The Newest Black
by Unwritten Whispers
Summary: When he's 7, Draco saves the life of a muggle and they become best friends. Now after the war, they learn something when Anica Black brings home a stray dog - she may not be a muggle after all. Sirius is still alive. This story gets really dark eventually. CW/OC DM/HG HP/GW RW/BZ
1. The Pureblood and The Muggle

**Disclaimer: Of course I don't own any of the characters that you recognize. Everyone who you do seem to recognize belongs to Miss JK Rowling! All of the characters (aside from Anica) are based off of her J.K's characters. All I did was turn Draco into a muggle lover, and well keep a lot of people alive.**

_The Pureblood and The Muggle_

_ He stayed hidden, much as he did the past two months. He didn't know what it was about her, but he felt an urge whenever he saw her. From the first moment he's seen her; he just knew it… there were nights that he couldn't sleep, and days when his mind was stuck in this horrible muggle world. Of course he told no one, no one would understand such a thing. He was Draco Malfoy, the son of an ex-Death Eater. Only seven years old, and he was already being trained to hate such… such foul creatures, as his father had called them. But he knew from when he first saw her, that she was no such thing. She could never be foul. She was almost too precious – how could he, a pureblooded wizard, think such a thing of a muggle? He himself often questioned it, but it was pointless. No matter how much he tried to stay away from this horrid world, he found himself always back. Hiding behind these trees and watching her._

_ It was two months before when he first spotted her. He had questioned his father about the difference between muggles and people like themselves, so as a punishment, and what Lucius had thought would be an explanation, he had apparated him to a muggle part of London and abandoned him. And that was when he saw her. She had been with an older woman. She held her hand tightly in her's and dragged her along the streets while she looked mildly annoyed with her. And that was it. It was that one simple moment that degraded Draco Malfoy into nothing more but a hidden shadow._

_ This night was no different. She had been sitting down on a swing, staring up at the sky, possibly counting the stars. As the moonlight reflected off the lights from the streets, Draco could see her perfectly. Dark raven curls that just sat flatly on her shoulders, with giant orb like eyes the color of a setting sun, glistening with unshed tears. The light powder complexion tone of her skin sat oddly with her eyes and hair color. It was ten that night, proving that they both had a nasty habit of not being able to sleep and escaping to this one park. Then again, his habit had formed that day he had first seen her. She was wearing dark blue and purple colored pajama shorts with a matching long sleeved top that seemed to button down the front._

_ Then it happened, something that hadn't happened all of these past months. "Well, well, well," came a taunting voice, causing the girl to look away from the stars and at the approaching boy._

_ Her eyes seemed to darken a bit when she had seen him… them actually: ten year old William Burgess and ten year old Zachariah Bane. "I didn't know the zoo allowed the animals to roam free at night." _

_ Draco flew his hands to his mouth to prevent his laughter from escaping his lips. The two boys weren't happy with her words. "Take that back, Snow White."_

_ Flying to her feet, the girl couldn't hold her tears back anymore. She hated that nickname. Given to her, not just because of her snowy white skin and her dark raven hair, but because she was an orphan. An orphan who was always being – no, she wouldn't think about it. This park was for her to get away from it all. Not run into two pig-like school boys who had nothing better to do than sneak out late at night and pick on little girls._

_ "My, my, my," laughed Zachariah. His skin was pink with a greasy toupee looking hairdo that sat atop his porky head. His dark brown eyes stared down at the younger girl in disgust. "Do you see what I see, William?"_

_ The blue eyed boy with brown curls bouncing off his head laughed in a cackling manner, reminding young Draco of his aunt Bellatrix. "It seems to me like Snow White here, forgot her manners."_

_ "But then that means she would have had to have any to forget in the first place."_

_ Rolling her eyes, the seven year girl decided she would be better off going home already. "And where the hell do you think you're going?" preventing the girl from passing him, William tightly grabbed onto her arm, flying her to the ground._

_ Draco began to clench his fists when he saw the girl hit her head against a loner rock. Blood began to trickle down her forehead, while a bruise formed on the spot where the boy had just grabbed her. Laughing once they heard the soft whimper escape the girl's mouth, the two boys broke off into their own versions of laughter. All Draco heard was a cackling screech and a squealing noise that resembled a pig trying to escape slaughter. The horrible sounds broke off into the night. Continuing to try and stay in his hidden spot he saw them move closer to the girl on the ground. She was no longer trying to hide her tears as she cowered away from them, holding her fingers to her bleeding forehead._

_ "Oi!" Draco shouted, running from his hiding spot once he saw the two boys both kicking her._

_ Turning around, they started to cackle and squeal once more. The girl on the ground had a glimmer of hope in her eyes though. She saw nothing wrong with the young and paste colored boy with hurricane eyes and short white blonde strands sticking up from his head. "What the hell is this?" mocked Zachariah._

_ "Leave her alone," Draco shouted at them, positioning himself between the stunned girl and the taunting bullies._

_ "Oh yeah," smirked William, "And what if we don't?"_

_ Seeing the boy who had come to rescue her, she stayed remained on the dark blue soft stuff that they always put under a swing set. Rocks were digging into her shorts, and cutting up the one hand she was using to hold herself up. "It's alright," she told the new boy. "You should go home before they kick you too."_

_ Her voice was quiet now. Quieter than when she spoke to the other two. Draco ignored her though. He turned to look at her, and saw blood on the corner of her lips, but he ignored her. "I'll make you," he told the two boys._

_ Once again, the night's beauty was tainted with cackling and a squeal. "Oh yeah," sneered Zachariah, pushing Draco to the ground. "How?"_

_ Feeling his blood begin to boil, Draco turned his eyes into a death glare. The two boys stopped cackling and squealing as the nights wind begin to turn into an icy chill and nip at them, leaving them feeling almost frostbitten. Jumping to his feet, Draco reached into his pants back pocket and pulled out his wand. It was a gift from his father; one that would definitely get them both sent to Azkaban – an illegal wand. Directing it at the two boys, he shouted out a curse that he had heard his father use on his mother all too many times. One that he himself, has sworn he would never use. "Crucio!"_

_ The girl's eyes widened in shock as she witnessed the scene. The two boys were now writhing in pain on the ground. Their screams began to pierce her ears, causing her heart to shatter. "Stop!" she shouted at the pale boy with death in his eyes._

_ Immediately pulling his wand away, he continued to stare at the two boys, "Run!" he told them, "Run and never look back. If I find out that you two bothered her again, I'll be back. And I'll bring friends with me," of course he wouldn't actually bring anyone with him, except maybe Blaise. But everyone else would just kill her themselves._

_ "Thank you," the girl said, pulling herself to her feet now that the two older boys were gone from sight. Now that they weren't screaming in pain anymore, she wanted to laugh at the tears in their eyes and the way they ran away in fright._

_ Nodding his head, Draco looked at her. His father was wrong. While staring at her bleeding forehead and her bleeding lips, he couldn't help but to note how wrong his father was. Muggles bled red just like him. How could their blood be so muddy when it was just as ruby red as his own? "Are you alright?"_

_ "Yes," she smiled shyly, touching her fingers to her mouth and pulling it away to examine the blood. "It isn't anything I'm not used to. I'm not too sure how I'll be once I'm back in school tomorrow though. I can't imagine Zachariah or William being too kind to me after this."_

_ "If they pick on you again, let me know."_

_ He was such an odd boy. "Do you go to Summerside Primary School as well?"_

_ Of course not, he sighed to himself. His parents would never send him off to such a muggle school. He wouldn't be allowed to a real school until he turned eleven. "I'm home schooled," he chose to tell her instead._

_ "Oh," she smiled softly now. She was hoping she would have a new friend in school the next morning. "Then how will I let you know if they hurt me again?" she questioned him._

_ Oh. Right. He hadn't exactly thought about that one. "How about we meet here," he suggested. "Every night at nine."_

_ "Okay," she smiled all too quickly. She liked the idea of having a friend. "I'm Anica," she introduced herself. "Anica Black."_

_ Soon they found a best friend in the other; a brother for her, and a sister for him. They met every night for months, and not once did she question him about his wand. It was a year of knowing each other before he confided in her though. He laughed as she watched with excitement in her eyes as he showed her magic. They were eleven when he smuggled the girl to Diagon Alley for a day. And it was the first trip of a total of seven throughout their years. The day before he left for Hogwarts, she had been crying. This was the last time she would see him. Sneaking out of their homes had been a nightly ritual from that night he saved her. She was his rock. And she didn't want to lose him. Draco did something he never thought possible. He gave her an owl; explaining to her that they could transfer letters and other things through the tiny owl._

_ Not a day went by without the tiny smoky black owl tapping on a window in London or a window at Hogwarts. Anica confided in Draco her fear. As she entered a muggle high school, the girls were all picking on her because they felt she was too pretty. The boys were all beginning to notice it as well. Draco also confided in her that a boy named Blaise Zabini was his only real friend, but he had bodyguards because something was happening. They cried for each other throughout the years they grew up. Anica cried because Draco had been forced to become a Death Eater and kill his favorite headmaster, whereas Draco cried for her because her foster parents continued to beat her with anything they could grasp in their hands. The years continued, and their tears seemed to never run dry._

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	2. A New Pet

A New Pet

It was one of those windy and rainy nights. There was no lightening or thunder in the sky, but the wind was strong enough to lead the rain into a waltz through your open windows. It was nights like these that couples loved to cuddle up under the blanket with each other, kids loved to bring out the flashlights and let their imaginations run wild, and teens loved to break into haunted houses to prove that they were brave. Seventeen year old Anica Black was different though. On this night, she was jogging. She had a lot going on in her mind, and it didn't bother her that she was getting drenched in the rain, it was midnight and nobody would be able to see her running. It was the perfect time to go out for a little run. The weather always seemed to match her mood just when she needed it the most. So far it seemed as if the rain became her best friend. Allowing her thoughts to take over her mind, she noticed that the lights were beginning to dim out on her. The rain was starting to pick up and she got a sudden chill as a gust of wind began to fly leaves all around her.

Sirius Black had been wandering about, not really feeling like returning to Grimmauld Place just yet. It's been a week since the war had ended and Harry Potter killed Voldemort, and he felt so alone now. Usually his place had been so loud and filled with people, but now it was like everyone was too tired and too shocked to leave their own homes. All the Weasleys stayed at the Burrow, even Charlie whom had been living with him since Bill and Fleur's wedding just before the year began, stayed with his family now. Harry had stayed with him for the first two days, but returned to be with his girlfriend and her family. Remus and Tonks had Teddy to stay with, and he was left alone. Deciding that it was safe now, he decided to sneak into muggle London.

The weather was horrible and he knew that he should be returning home already, but then he saw her. His heart raced. It's been nearly sixteen years since he's seen her, but he would recognize her anywhere. Her eyes. Her eyes were the same as he remembered. Of course she had only been a year old, just one month younger than Harry, when he last saw her – right before he was taken to Azkaban and he left her on the doorstep of a muggle orphanage, knowing what would happen to her if any of Voldemort's followers had found out about her. What the hell is she doing out here this late at night?

Feeling like she was being watched, Anica stopped jogging. She's already ran about five miles and if she was being followed, she didn't want to waste any more of her energy running away from home. Home… she scoffed; if that's what you can call it. Wearing just long pink colored sweatpants that clung to her legs giving her extra weight and a simple plain black hoodie that reached to her knees, the rain pushed the hood out of her face so that was the only visible place on her body. Noticing that she was at an abandoned playground, she sat down right on the grass, throwing herself on her back and allowing the rain to attack her face. This felt so good right now.

What the hell is she doing? He thought. Why the hell is she laying on the grass in the middle of the night during a storm? Making sure that he was in his dog mode, Sirius walked over to get a better look at her. She grew up more than he would have liked for her to, but she was just as beautiful as he imagined she would be, if not more. He never thought the day would come when he would get to see her again. It's not like he hasn't thought about it, he just didn't think he would ever get the chance to. When he escaped from Azkaban to protect Harry and prove his innocence, he's thought of claiming her so many times, but of course he pushed those thoughts away from his mind. He couldn't do that to her. He couldn't take her away from the only possible family she knew and pull her into his world. Not when she could be killed so easily.

So now, he just stood a couple feet away from her; admiring the beautiful young woman that she's become. She had his powder complexion with his raven curls. It was sticking out from her hoodie, allowing him to see the rings cling to her face as well as her clothing as it reached just past her thighs in a thick braid. Her flame filled eyes were wide open, accepting the rock feeling raindrops to fall into them. She wore a tiny pink hoop in her left nose nostril with the tiny pink diamond in the right corner of her upper lip and the two tiny pink hoops in the bottom left corner of her mouth. Instead of just the one simple pink diamond he put in her ears, she now had two black diamonds in her left ear's cartridge, with three pink hoops in her right ear's cartridge, three large pink hoops in her left ear's earlobe and two black diamonds in her right earlobe. She opened her mouth to sigh and he caught a glimpse of a pink ball in her tongue as well.

"What the hell?" feeling eyes on her, Anica sat up and found herself staring into the piercing yellow eyes of a large black dog. It looked as if it had wolf blood in him. "Hey, boy," she smiled, relieved that the person who was following her was, instead not a person, just a dog. "What are you doing out in the rain, huh?"

Seeing her hold out her hand for him, Sirius grinned to himself and let out an excited bark as he ran into her lap and started to kiss her face all over. He's never imagined this day possible.

Laughing, she rubbed her hands through his fur and felt ice. "Damn," she hissed, pulling her hand away from him then jumping to her feet. "You're bloody cold. Where's your owners, boy? Do they know that you're out here in this storm?"

A sense of pride surged through his body as he jumped up against her body. Here she was freezing her own arse off and she was worried about him. She turned out alright.

Leaning back down, she searched his neck for a collar, "They didn't even make sure to claim you, huh, boy?" smiling, she ruffled his fur, "Well that's alright then. You can come home with me. I doubt that Margo and Edward would approve but fuck them, eh."

He liked the idea that she was taking him home, but it worried him. Doesn't she know not to invite strange pets into your home? And what does she mean Margo and Edward? Are they her roommates – but no, she's too young to have roommates. She's supposed to be living at home with her parents still yet. Well the parents who took her in.

"Can you run?" her question tore him out of his thoughts as the rain started to come down feeling like hail. Running up the street to answer her question, he looked back at her with a wag of his tail and a bark. Laughing, she ran up to him, "Well alright then. Let's run it back home so we can get you nice and warm."

Running by his daughter's side, he had never felt so free before. This was a freedom that he hadn't even felt with Harry; he loved Harry, but a godson's love could never compare to a daughter's love. No one knew about her of course. Only Remus Lupin, and James and Lily Potter had ever known she existed. Her mother died while giving birth to her, and he never trusted Peter Pettigrew that much. He and James would always laugh that Harry and Anica would be the best of friends, seeing as how close they were in that one year that they've been together. They always joked that they would grow up and marry, while Lily would only roll her eyes. Remus was her godfather.

Looking up at her every now and then, he would see the freedom in her own eyes as she ran. He was amazed with his daughter's abilities. They've been running for fifteen minutes straight and not once did she run out of breath. She only slowed down when she noticed he wasn't next to her, but once he would reach her side, she would laugh then pick up her speed once more. She was worried about him. There was a pain in his heart as he thought about it. The daughter that he never thought he'd have a never chance of being with again was worried for him.

"Well this is it," she announced leading him into a very tiny upstairs room. There was a single tiny bed shoved against the wall with only a single black comforter on it and two pillows. It had no sheets and no pillowcases. The floorboards were cold and bare and she had no curtains over the window. There was a dresser with a lamp on it, and a cracked mirror hanging above it. "It's not much," she told him with a shrug of her shoulders, "But it's all we have for now."

The pain came back to him. This was all she had? Even Harry had more than this and he grew up in a damned cupboard. When he placed her for the orphanage to find, he thought she would be treated like the princess she was. Not a damned fucking servant. He didn't realize that he was growling until she told him to hush up before the beast and the bitch woke up. Walking over to the corner of the room, he watched as she pulled up a towel after smelling it to make sure it was still clean and walked over to him.

It took eleven minutes until he was completely dry and once he was, she called him up onto her bed, covering him with the comforter, to his astonishment, and then left the room to shower. Once her door was shut, Sirius changed back into his human self. His own powder skin looked ghostly compared to moon's shine from the window. His own slick black curls reached just past his shoulders and his dark cold eyes were filled with hatred towards the people who imprisoned his daughter. He felt like walking right into their room and killing them, but he knew he couldn't do such a thing. Not yet anyways. Then he saw it. Hearing a tap at the window, he looked up and saw an owl. Cocking an eyebrow, he looked over at the door to make sure she wasn't coming in anytime soon. Why is there an owl coming to her room late at night? Does she know about his world? But how?

Letting the owl in, he saw that it was a smoky black color with eyes the color of turquoise. She stared at him for a bit, before landing on the dresser, then an idea struck him. She hadn't brought a letter. If he were to write a letter and send it out right now, Anica wouldn't notice her owl was missing. She would think she was still delivering her letter to whoever she was writing to.

_Moony,_

_ I found her. I was walking around muggle London and came across her jogging. She saw me in the storm and brought me home thinking I'm a stray. Don't write back. This is her owl and she doesn't know I'm sending out this letter. I'll contact you once the chance arises again. If anyone notices that I'm gone, please assure them I'm alright. I have to do this. This is my only chance to know her. Give my love to Tonks and Teddy._

_ - Padfoot_

Hearing the shower water turn off, Sirius quickly tied the letter to the owl's leg then whispered, "Please take this to Remus Lupin."

Wrapped in only a towel, Anica saw that the dog was still lying on her bed. Looking at the window to make sure it was still shut; she felt a chill, almost as if the window had been open. Walking to her dresser she noticed that the dog covered his eyes with a paw and turned away from her while she slipped on the red and white striped knickers underneath the towel. Laughing at the dog's modesty, she threw the towel across the room into the corner, and slipped on a plain black spaghetti strap.

"I'm dressed now," she laughed when she saw the dog turn to face her again as if understanding what she said. Grabbing a hairbrush off the dresser, she started to brush her damp hair. "Do you have a name, boy?"

He saw she had tattoos as well, Across her lower stomach, from hip to hip, she had the word _Forgotten_, and going down from her left breast to her pierced belly button were separated praying hands holding a broken rosary with tear shaped beads, and the cross as the 'T,' in _Forgotten._ Her left thigh had a monarch butterfly the size of a baseball, flying up her black shorts, with a giant crow the size of a football flying up the back of her leg after it. Only the tips of the crows wings were black, making it look more like a shadow than anything. There was a trail following the butterfly, wrapping around the crows neck, and reaching her ankle. The trail was made up of words; _Even in the darkest of times, remember there is always a light. _Starting from her right hip, all the way down to her knee, he noticed a bunch of random quotes pieced together to make a story.

Making sure not to bark, he quietly whimpered. "No huh? I can't believe your family would abandon you just like that, then again what family doesn't abandon anyone nowadays, eh boy?" sighing, she continued to stare at him. "How about," he chuckled when he saw that she pouted her lip to bite on the bottom one as she thought of a name for him. "Hmm… umm… how do you like Demon? You kinda look like one that's why," smiling as she was proud of her new name for him, she nodded her head, "Yep, I'm gonna call you Demon."

He had to admit it was a good name. The year that he escaped from Azkaban, Harry had always been so freaked out every time he saw him because his form is the same of the _Grim_, the large black dog that comes to you as a death omen. Once Anica finished brushing her hair, she turned off the room's lamp and climbed into the bed pulling him under the covers with her. He wished that she would wear more clothing than she was, but he knew that most females preferred to wear as less clothes as possible when it was time to sleep. Resting his damp nose against her ear as his face laid across her neck, his heart calmed down as she snuggled in closely to him. And for the first time since he deserted his daughter on the front steps of an orphanage, Sirius Black slept peacefully with no haunting nightmares.

Somewhere in the wizarding part of London, Remus Lupin stood in front of a warm and blazing fire holding a letter in his hand while a small smile crept over his face. "I wish you the best old mate," he whispered.

"Wish who the best?" asked the yawning voice of his wife as she wrapped her arms around his waist. Resting her cheek against the warm back of her husband, she chuckled when she saw he was wearing his blasted purple boxers.

"Padfoot," he smiled, turning around to wrap his arms around her. He still had no idea how he got so lucky with such a magnificent wife. One minute they're fighting alongside in the Order and arguing because he preferred to call her _Nymphadora_, which she considered to be a curse, then the next they're married and have a beautiful son together. "Is Teddy finally sleeping?"

"Yes," Tonks chuckled, bringing her lips to his in a gentle kiss. "He took one look at my bubblegum hair and instantly made his blue."

"He always likes his hair blue," Remus chuckled as well. "You know that we can't get him to keep it an ordinary color if you're going to keep yours pink."

Smirking, Tonks looked at the letter at in Remus's hands. "So what do you wish Sirius good luck with?"

"His daughter," the look on his wife's face was priceless. Her eyebrows rose so high up while her jaw hit the floor.

"What?"

Nodding his head, Remus handed Tonks the letter, "Only James, Lily, and I knew about her. Her mother died during childbirth and Padfoot was scared of what would happen if anyone knew he was a single father. You know how those years were. She's exactly one month younger than Harry, actually. And after Voldemort killed James and Lily, Padfoot dropped her off on the steps of an orphanage in muggle London. I'm her godfather, you know."

"M-My cousin has a daughter!" she was still shocked with hearing just that alone.

Chuckling, Remus nodded his head once more. "He just wrote to me that he found her. I don't think he wants anyone knowing about her just yet though, Tonks."

"I won't say anything," she nodded her own head now. "But seriously? Sirius? He has a daughter?"

**Please review. I finished typing out 7 chapters already, but this story is going to be much longer than that. Let me know if you think it's worth continuing though(:**


	3. My Daughter's Best Friend is Who

**Thank you to; **_**Karma's Angel**_** for reviewing, so I posted earlier than I said I would :3 please leave more reviews, and enjoy! Oh… and I tried to keep Draco as in character as possible, but it's hard to do when his best friend is a muggle. But I still find myself highly attracted to him…**

My Daughter's Best Friend Is Who!

It's been a whole week since Sirius found his daughter that night on the streets. He learned very quickly on his first day that he very much hates the vile people that took her in. They made the Dursleys look like saints. The scrawny and rat faced man with Snape's greasy black hair would barge into the room every morning demanding that Anica run downstairs and make him and his vile plum looking wife breakfast, before making her scrub the house spotless. It was a very interesting meeting they had that morning when Edward Gossier burst into Anica's room while she was sleeping, and met a growling Sirius.

_Sirius had just woken up, thinking it was all some cruel dream, when he realized his daughter's arms were still wrapped around him. Smiling to himself at the thought of him being with his daughter, he licked the side of her face causing her to lightly stir before turning away from him. He saw that she slept with her mouth slightly hanging open and it made him laugh to himself. She definitely got that from him._

_ "Wake up you stupid bitch!" growling at the rude intrusion and name towards his daughter, Sirius found himself baring his teeth at a shirtless and hairy chested rat. "Oi! What the fuck is this? Margo!" the man shouted, causing Anica to jump awake. "Margo! Get in here!"_

_ "What, Edward!" came the screeching sound of a very large looking woman with matted up hair and pearls all around her neck. "What the bloody hell is that horrid beast doing in here?"_

_ "Did you allow the bitch to get a dog?"_

_ "Of course not," her face showed the disgust at such a thing. "Snow White, where the hell did you get that horrid creature?"_

_ "My name is not Snow White," Sirius could feel the rage coursing through his daughter's body and he bared his teeth even more with a snarl now. "And my friend gave him to me."_

_ The rat and the plum started to wheeze with their cackles. "Since when did you have friends?"_

_ Sirius growled loudly and let out a bark now. Jumping back in fright, Edward shouted, "Get this bloody thing out of my house now!"_

_ "No," she shook her head. "I won't. Now get out of my room so I can get dressed," when Edward took a step forward, Sirius lunged at him, tackling him to the floor. Laughing, Anica simply said, "Demon, no, he's not worth it."_

They still commanded her around, but not so much as they did before. She still had to clean and cook for them, but they no longer rudely barged into her room in such a manner and Anica told him one morning while taking him for a walk that ever since he arrived, they no longer hit her either. He made a mental note to kill them before he left, but then the thought hurt him. He didn't want to leave. He didn't want to ever leave her. He found his daughter and if it meant him having to live out the rest of his life as a dog and never see any of his friends anymore, he was perfectly content in doing so.

Then there was a sudden pop sound that changed everything. Edward and Margo were out for the entire day and wouldn't return until the next morning so Anica was laying on the couch downstairs with her feet hanging off the armrest while Sirius laid on the floor with his head on her arm. He knew that his daughter was feeling lazy because she was still wearing the grey sweats that reached her knees and the cut up white t-shirt while her hair was just thrown into a sloppy bun. And that was when they heard the pop noise come from the bedroom. Sirius knew what that sound meant and was running up the stairs already growling with his daughter closely behind him. Was it possible for her to know too?

"Oh my God!" Anica gasped.

Growling, Sirius recognized the boy who was now standing in his daughter's room. Draco Malfoy. He grew up. He changed. Where fear once haunted his icy grey hurricane colored eyes, there was now a deathly look to it, almost challenging anyone who would dare to look into them. His platinum white hair no longer stuck out in every direction, but instead fell over his eyes and just above his shoulders, making him look even more dangerous. He was no longer scrawny, and even managed to claim a thickened eight pack. Years of Quidditch, mixed in with months of surviving in Azkaban, had trained his body to no longer be weak. Wearing torn black slacks, and a ripped and bloody white dress shirt, he was swaying while standing.

"Demon!" Anica shouted when the dog pounced on Draco. "Demon, no, get off of him now," running over to the scene, she grabbed the dog and nearly threw him across the room. "Draco," the tears were fresh in her eyes, "Oh my God, Draco. What the hell happened to you?"

Draco? He couldn't believe his ears. His daughter threw him across the room for Draco Malfoy? Is this why she has an owl? Is this who she knows from his world? And she didn't seem too surprised when he apparated into her room. His daughter is friends with a Malfoy? Let alone Draco Malfoy of all Malfoys; he found himself growling again.

"Demon, leave him alone," she hissed at him, before turning all her attention back onto the weakened boy in front of her. Wrapping her arms around his waist, Anica helped him over to the bed where she laid him down. "Draco, I thought… I thought you were dead. You didn't write back to me. I thought they killed you in the war, you don't know how crazy I've been going not knowing if you were dead or alive."

The war? She knew about the war?

"I-I-I'm fine Ani," came the hoarse reply from the bed. "Potter saved me. I was almost killed in the Room of Requirements, but he saved me."

Harry saved him? His daughter knew of Harry. She knew of Hogwarts?

"Then where the hell were you?" Sirius snarled again as he realized his daughter was undressing the Slytherin sex god. "Why haven't you been replying to me these past two weeks?"

"They sent me to Azkaban."

Anica gasped then started to cry even more now. "They – they what? Are you okay?" then she gasped again, "Did you escape? Oh God. It's okay. No one will ever expect you to be hiding out so comfortably in a muggle place. I'll hide you in here until my eighteenth birthday then we'll figure something out. If you rest from now until August thirty first you could apparate us both out of here. We can go to America even, and then I can get a job and we could-"

Sirius had to admit his daughter's ideas were excellent. He just didn't like the idea that she was so willing to run away with Malfoy of all people. The thought sickened him.

Lying on the bed in nothing but green silk boxers, Draco released a tiny laugh. "No," he shook his head, "Ani shut up for once. I didn't escape. They set me free. Potter and Weasley are both working down at the Ministry of Magic and they helped get me out. I guess my mum saved Potter or something."

"Oh thank God," climbing off the bed, Anica said, "I'll be right back. Let me get some cloths and hot water. You look like shit," then turning on the growling dog, she pointed a finger at him, "You stay right where you are, Demon. Do you understand me? Draco is a friend. We don't hurt him. He needs our help right now. You protect him. If anybody comes in here for him you protect him."

Draco stared at the large dog in front of him while Anica ran out of the room. He looked familiar; almost as if he's seen him before. But from where? The dog's glare was making him extremely uncomfortable, baring his teeth up at him in a low snarl and never removing his death gaze from his eyes. They stayed like that for about three minutes, just staring at each other: Draco; wondering when Anica got a dog, and Sirius; wondering why the hell his daughter didn't want him to kill Draco right now. Why did she feel the need to protect him? He was his own flesh and blood and even he didn't feel the need to protect him. Then a thought struck him. Do the two teens know that they're cousins?

"What's with the hell beast?" Draco asked while Anica wiped away his scrapes and bruises with the warm cloth.

"Be nice, Draco," Anica playfully glared at him. "Demon, come on the bed, boy."

Jumping back as the large dog jumped onto the bed and sat closely to his face, Draco hissed. "Demon," he scoffed, "Really Ani? You couldn't think of anything better? Where did you get him?"

"I found him one night," she shrugged her shoulders. "A week ago. I was jogging and-"

"Wait-" Sirius noticed the hatred burn the boy's eyes, "You were jogging? Did that twat fucking hit you again?"

"No," Anica avoided looking at Draco's eyes while Sirius watched them both. Draco was actually concerned for her? "You didn't respond to any of my letters. I couldn't sleep thinking you were dead. So I went jogging."

"I'm sorry," now it was Draco who avoided her eyes. "I was too scared to apparate during the battle, in case he won. I figured he would come looking for me, and I didn't want him to find you," his whole body shuddered at the thought of Voldemort finding her. "Malfoys aren't supposed to be best friends with a muggle. I had to stay back to make sure that Potter won. I even struck a curse at my own aunt Bella just to help them out. That's how I got this," he said, pointing at a still healing scar on his lower rib. "She realized it was me and flew a curse back at me. If Mrs. Weasley didn't seek her out for attacking Ginny, she would've killed me."

Wiping the tears from her eyes, Anica thought she saw confusion in the dog's face. "At least that crazy bitch is dead now. What about your father? Was he killed too?"

Disgust showed on Draco's face as he shook his head. "The bastard is still alive. But unlike me, the Ministry showed him no kindness. He's in Azkaban for five hundred years."

"He can't escape can he?"

Draco and Sirius both looked up and they both softened at the fear in the girl's eyes, "Of course not Ani. Nobody can escape. And especially since after the war, they tripled up on the Dementors. It may have only been two weeks since the war, but everyone's still in the aftermath and on guard of everything."

"That's not true," she pouted. "You told me that that one bloke escaped when we were thirteen. I remember you writing to me about it, and you even sent me the articles on him. That Sirius Black guy, he escaped before."

Sirius was too shocked that his daughter knew of his name and that Draco wrote to her about him and sent her the articles of him the very same year that he escaped, that he didn't care that Draco was now petting him absentmindedly.

"But he was one of the good guys," Draco pointed out with a sigh. "So his escaping is a good thing, whereas if Lucius were to escape, he would kill me for sure."

Why would Lucius kill his own spawn?

Once Draco was clean enough for Anica, she gave him some sweats saying that he didn't need a shirt, and left the room to clean up everything she just used. Continuing to lay down, Draco slipped them on then went back to petting the dog who was still sitting next to him. When Anica returned she had a glass of water for Draco and a large bowl of meats and breads for the dog, leaving it on the bed next to Draco's body, she sat down on the edge of the bed.

"So your mum must be excited your out, eh?" she grinned, "And that Lucius is imprisoned for life. No more beatings for either of you."

Draco shrugged his shoulders, "She doesn't know I'm out yet. I came straight here once I was released."

"What?" her eyes darkened. "Draco Lucius Malfoy, you should be so lucky to have a mum who cares enough about you. How dare you come here before you see her!"

Snickering, Draco looked up at the very confused Sirius and told him, "You would think she would be happy I thought of her first, eh?"

"But not before your mum," Anica hissed, slapping him lightly on his chest. "I don't have a mum, Draco, or a dad. I was left outside of an orphanage by people who don't care about me, leaving me to be taken in by a beast and a bitch. So your father was a prick, but your mum was always-"

"-there for me and took most of the curses my father would fly at me while fighting with her sister to prevent her from raping me and tearing my body up. Blah… blah… blah…" he rolled his eyes. "You give me this speech every time, Ani. I'm immune to it already. And yes I know I'm lucky to have my mum, but I came here first because I knew you must've thought I was dead."

"Oh," she turned a bright shade of red then smiled. "Well then thanks. For letting me know that you're well enough alive. Now go home and be with your mum."

"I'd much rather be here," he sighed. "I'll write her a letter."

"You will not," her eyebrows furrowed.

Laughing, Draco shook his head, "Your pouting and your scowling doesn't work with me Ani. Remember… I've known you since you were seven. I'm the one who taught you how to pout and scowl."

That caught Sirius's attention. They knew each other since they were seven? He was extremely confused right now. Bellatrix tried raping Draco? He always knew she was sadistic, but he didn't know that much. She was always the cousin he hated the most. Lucius was beating and cursing Narcissa and his own son? And Narcissa would fight with Bellatrix to protect Draco? What? And all this time Anica knew it? He gave her up to keep her away from this world and all this time she knew everything, but from Malfoys point of view? And he called her a muggle. So he was friends with her thinking she was just a muggle? They didn't know that she was a half-blood or that they were cousins? What?

"So is it safe now then?" Anica asked Draco, sitting on the floor next to the bed with her back facing him. "Now that Voldemort's dead and most of the Death Eaters are gone for good, are you safe?"

Sirius saw the pain in his eyes as he shook his head, "I'm an ex-Death Eater. People still want me dead. Voldemort still has some followers out there that I'm sure would want me dead."

"But you were forced to become one," Sirius noted the tears in his daughter's voice and jumped off the bed, placing his head in her lap. Petting the dog's head, she continued talking to Draco, "Can't they give you that truth potion thing or look into your mind. Lucius would _Crucio_ you and your mum every day until you finally gave in."

"Then I'd just be a traitor to the followers," he sighed, staring up at the ceiling. "Either way they want me dead. The good guys don't trust me and the bad guys want me dead."

Sirius looked up and saw the hurt in his daughter's eyes. She was hurting for Draco Malfoy. Then again, hearing his side of the story, even he was beginning to feel sorry for him.

"You're best friends with a muggle, Draco Malfoy," Anica snorted. "If only they knew that. If only Hermione Granger knew you only called her a Mudblood because Crabbe and Goyle were right there. If only she knew how you really feel about muggles."

Laughing, Draco ran both his hands through his hair as he thought about those coffee colored eyes and caramel curls. "You think she'd go to the mall with us and watch a movie while we gossip about boys?"

"Oh shut up," and for the first time since seeing her again, Sirius heard his daughter laugh a real laugh. "That's not all I do. Prat."

"Speaking of boys, and prats, how's that one bloke you're seeing?"

Sirius felt her stiffen beneath him and he stared into fear filled eyes. "I broke it off," her voice was calm, but Sirius could see her face wasn't.

"Good," Draco smirked. "I hated that guy. Something was too fishy about him. Even when I gave him that whole brother speech about how if he hurts you I'll kill him, he looked at some blonde wench."

Shaking the haunting memories out of her mind, Sirius saw how quickly Anica put on another smile, "Yeah, a total prat. You were right. He was a waste of my time."

"When am I ever wrong?"

"Git."

"Prude."

"Ferret."

"Oi!" he shouted. Hearing the giggle escape her lips, he hit her with the pillow. Sirius didn't growl, because he saw the playfulness in it. "You can't call me that."

"Everyone else does."

"But they went to Hogwarts and witnessed it. You didn't. Muggle."

"Ferret!"

Groaning, Draco turned on his side to look at her, "I wish I never told you that story."

"You were the one who wrote it to me," she was still giggling.

"So… Anica Black."

"So… Draco Malfoy."

Sirius was now lying against the door so he could watch them both. Anica was lying on her back next to the bed, and Draco was lying next to her. Their arms were touching, but they still made no move to attack each other, sexually.

"I was thinking-"

"That's something you don't hear every day," when she felt the pinch to her thigh, Anica started to laugh. "Sorry, force of habit."

"Anyways," Draco rolled his eyes, but the smile was visible on his face. "Now that Voldemort's dead and all the Death Eaters should hopefully be caught by the time your birthday comes, you can stay in the Manor with me."

Noticing the glare in the dog's eyes, Anica shook her head. "Yes, because your mum would be so quick to accept a muggle in the Malfoy Manor."

"The Manor is mine," he told her with a shrug of his shoulders. "In the wizarding world, everything gets passed down to the male. So since Lucius is rotting away in Azkaban for all of eternity, everything becomes mine. Mum needs my permission just to touch the account at Gringotts."

"Draco," she gasped. "You wouldn't be so mean to her."

"Of course not," he shook his head, "But I wouldn't allow her to say anything about you moving in. I'll tell her that if she doesn't like it, she can always go to the villa in France or something. I don't want you staying here. I've spent two weeks in Azkaban already. I'm willing to go back for killing those vile creatures you're staying with."

Chuckling, she pointed at the very attentive dog, "Demon scared them. They're actually not that bad anymore. I mean they're still horrid, but they don't touch me or yell anymore. Demon attacked Edward one morning because he called me a bitch."

Draco's chest was heaving with his laughter. "I love that dog," as the laughter simmered down, he turned his face over his friend's, "But really Ani. I don't like you staying here. And if you're that worried about Mum, we could lie to her and say you're family or something."

"What?"

His eyes rolled. "Honestly woman, don't you ever listen to me when I talk to you. My mum's side of the family are Blacks. We could probably pass you off as a relative."

Neither of the talking teens noticed Sirius's serious gaze on them right now. So they didn't know that she was in fact related to him through the Black side. They just thought it was a coincidence in names?

"I can't lie. And you know that."

"But I can."

"I'm not going to lie to her about being related to you Draco."

"Then marry me."

Sitting straight up, Sirius also jumped to his feet, earning an odd look from Draco. "What? Eew, no, Draco. That's disgusting. Are you bloody mental. You're like a brother to me," her entire body shuddered at the thought.

"It isn't a pleasant thought for me either, you know," he also bolted up. "But if that's the only way to do get you into the Manor then I'll suffer with you as a wife."

"It's incest," after a minute of a thought filled silence, she sighed. "And if I pretend to be a Black of your guys' blood, what will I say when I can't do any magic?"

He gave her the most complicated stare as if she were the daftest woman alive. "We'll just tell her you're a squib."

Sirius continued to sit there, listening to them plan about Anica escaping the muggle world. He learned so many new things about her and many things about his nephew as well. Funny how he never thought of him as a nephew until he learned his estranged daughter had a secret friendship with him. He was relieved to find that they took each other like blood siblings instead of lovers, and learned just how close they really were. He was so wrapped up in his own thoughts that he didn't notice the owl that flew into the window with the letter addressed to him.


	4. The Demon Named Sirius

The Demon Named Sirius

Anica jumped up in fright when she saw Draco directing his wand at her new beloved dog. Hearing the sound come from his daughter, Sirius was torn from his thoughts and saw a letter in Draco's hand with a wand directed at his face. "What the hell are you doing, Draco?"

"I knew something was off," he smirked, not once taking his eyes off the large and now standing dog. "Ani, get behind me. I knew it. He's too attentive to just be a dog."

"What are you talking about?" grabbing the closed envelope in her hands, Anica gasped and stayed where she was, "Why do I have a letter addressed to Sirius Black? Maybe the owl made a mistake, Draco."

Shaking his head, Draco took another step towards Sirius. "Remember what I told you Ani… about Black? That he's an _Animagus_, remember how I told you that his animal form is a very large, almost wolf-like black dog."

When the letter hit the floor, Sirius realized that he had been caught. Standing there in his human form he saw the fear in his daughter's eyes and hatred in Draco's eyes. He was glad that Draco was quick to put Anica behind him, but hurt that they both felt the need to have to protect her from him. Staying where he was, he looked down at the letter and noticed that it was in Harry's handwriting. He looked around for the owl, but didn't see one.

"I can explain."

Draco didn't lower his wand, but his glare suddenly softened. "Oi! Ani, you said that your parents just dumped you off at the orphanage when you were one?"

"Yeah," she nodded her head, staring into the surprisingly soft eyes of Sirius Black.

"And you found the dog a week ago?"

"Yeah."

"Potter killed Voldemort two weeks ago," he lowered his wand completely now. "That's why I felt a need to protect you when I first saw you."

Sirius cocked his entire head to the left while Anica did the same. "What?"

Chuckling, Draco shook his head. He kept his wand in his hand, but had it lowered. "I thought you looked familiar that first time I saw you. Remember when you asked me why I was following you that night I protected you from those two brutes, and I said I saw you at the store with Margo and felt a sudden need to protect you and keep you safe?"

"Yeah," her voice was unsure.

He nodded his head in the direction of the very amused Sirius Black. "Your name is Black. You were dumped at the orphanage the night that the Potters were killed and the day before _he_ got sent to Azkaban for his framed killing spree. I thought I recognized you and felt the need to protect you ever since. A week after Voldemort is killed, you come across a very large demon looking dog that protects you from Edward and Margo and even myself. You said he turns away when you change right?" when Anica nodded her head, Draco rolled his eyes, "Well ain't it obvious then?"

"Ain't what obvious?" she raised her eyebrows in confusion, "I'm still just trying to figure out why Sirius Black is standing in my room and pretended to be a dog this past week. I thought he was the good guy?"

"I am the good guy, love," he said, glad to finally use his voice for once and to be able to actually speak to his daughter. "And what Malfoy's trying to say here is that-"

"-we wouldn't be lying if we told my mum we were blood through the Black side after all," Draco grinned.

Looking at Draco as if he lost his mind then back at Sirius who was also very mental, she caught a glimpse of herself in the mirror and gasped. Looking from the mirror to Sirius and back to the mirror, she covered her mouth with her hands. "You're my father."

They all just stood there for a couple minutes allowing it to sink in. Sirius couldn't take his eyes off his daughter who couldn't take her eyes off him either. If she shouted for him to leave he would. It would hurt him, but he would do anything she asked of him. Anica was just trying to let everything reach her mind right now. She tried to make sense of it, but all she could think of was how she now had a father. And he had been protecting her this past week. Draco rubbed his face with both of his hands. He was in a mix between excited and nervous. All these years; eleven years of being best friends and taking each other as blood siblings, and they had been blood cousins. Her father and his mother were first cousins. He just couldn't believe that her father was Sirius Black.

"W-Why did you dump me?" Anica finally asked.

"Only three people knew I had a daughter," he told her. "Remus Lupin, and James and Lily Potter. I didn't associate with anyone other than them. The night that James and Lily were killed, I hid you. I hid you amongst the muggles to protect you. I knew that they would come after you. The next day I was sent to Azkaban."

Reaching his hand out, Draco took Anica's in his and gave it a squeeze. "It makes sense Ani. Think about it. If Voldemort knew that you were the daughter of Sirius Black you would've been killed, and if any of the good guys knew, you would've had it worse off there than you did here, at least until the ending of third year, if you were even still alive then."

"After I left Azkaban I wanted to find you," Sirius continued talking, still not moving. He didn't want to scare her. "But I didn't want to drag you into the war. So I stayed away."

"And now?" she asked, quirking an eyebrow. "You came looking for me now because Voldemort's dead?"

"Honestly," he shook his head, "I was just exploring when I found you-" he saw the hurt in her eyes, and quickly held up his hands, "Don't get me wrong, I'm glad that I did see you that night. I don't regret it at all, but I wasn't ready to go out searching for you. I thought you were happy and I didn't want to ruin it. I mean what was I supposed to say to you, _'hey I'm your biological father. I gave you up because an evil dark wizard killed my best friend and his wife and tried to kill their son so I wanted to protect you, but he's dead now. So come and hug Daddy'_ I didn't want to scare you," he sighed. "Of course I didn't know you already knew all about this world."

"That's why you attacked Draco then?" she asked him. "Because you didn't know I knew about you guys and you thought he was going to kill me?"

He nodded his head, "I was hesitant to not turn and kill him right then, but then I saw how scared you were when you saw the state he was in. And as I listened to you both talking and watched you guys, I saw that he was just as much a victim in this war as anyone else."

"Oh shit!" Draco said, the realization kicking in that Sirius Black now knew some of his secrets.

Realizing what Draco was thinking, Sirius shook his head. "Your secrets are safe with me Draco. I'll be sure that the Order and the Army know that you are in fact on our side though," he smiled warmly at him. "But I won't say anything else."

"Yeah, thanks," Draco nodded his head, suddenly feeling very dizzy.

Anica continued to stand there, taking in everything that she was being told. She wanted to hate him. She tried to hate him. But she couldn't. He gave her up to protect her. Sure, she's been getting abused every day of her life and treated as a slave, but it could've been worse. She could be dead by now. And she did meet Draco through all of this. "Okay," she nodded her head, "Okay then."

"Okay what?" he cocked an eyebrow.

Smiling, she said, "Okay. You're my dad and I'm your daughter. I mean I get why you did what you did. And I'm glad that you did that. You and Draco are both right. I could be dead already if I stayed in that world, and if I wasn't living in the muggle world, I never would've met Draco, and without me to keep him planted he might've went over to the dark side. So thank you. For doing what you did."

"So we're actually cousins then," Draco grinned and elbowed her gently in the ribs. "My mum and Sirius are first cousins."

"Oh right," she also grinned. "And to think all this time, we thought we were just playing pretend."

Grinning widely as he watched them both with sincere smiles on their faces, he said, "So what do we do now then? Would you like me to give you your magic back?"

"Magic?" her and Draco both gasped.

He chuckled. "Yes – magic, you're a half-blood. Your mother was a muggle and well I'm a pureblood. You have magic, but when I gave you up, I did a binding spell so you wouldn't show any of it. If you want though, I can take it off now."

"No," she shook her head, "I don't want to have any magic. I'm fine just being a muggle."

Draco nodded his head in agreement, "I wouldn't trust her with any magic anyway, she would be dangerous."

Feeling a bit more relaxed and comfortable, the three of them all moved over onto the bed and started to laugh a little bit. They continued talking; Draco telling Sirius a couple of embarrassing stories of the daughter he never got the chance to watch grow, and Anica slapping Draco over his head and telling on him for being a prat. This was all new to Sirius. He was used to laughing and joking with the younger members of the Order and with the members of Dumbledore's Army, but this was new to him. Now he was laughing and joking with his daughter and his nephew. A daughter that he hadn't seen since she was only one years old, and a nephew that he always considered a threat and tried to actually kill before. He liked this feeling though. It was nice, like he finally had his own real little family to call his own. Well of course he had Tonks, but now he had Anica and Draco as well. He would have to introduce them all.

"Oh," he said suddenly, jumping up. "The letter."

"Oh right!" both Draco and Anica leaned forward, watching him as he opened it.

_Padfoot,_

_ Moony told me that you have a daughter. He said it was meant to be a secret, but we don't feel the need of that. Voldemort is dead now so it's safe to bring her around, if you want to. I'd love to meet her. He told me stories of when we were just babies. It only feels right that I meet her. After all I am like her brother in a sort of way – you being her actual father, and my godfather. I'm glad to hear that you're doing find and you found her. I know you'll murder me for sending this out to you because you're living as a dog with her, but she needs to know the truth. Invite her for dinner once you reconcile._

_ - Harry_

"I want Draco there," Anica said once the letter was read aloud.

"What?" Draco began to choke.

Nodding her head, she looked up at Sirius. "I understand what you did. I'm even willing to call you Dad if that's what you want me to call you, but I'm not giving up Draco. What you've overheard today isn't nearly a quarter of what we've been through together. He's literally saved me from dying millions of times. He is my best friend, my brother, and now apparently my actual blood cousin. I know they don't like him, but I won't go without him."

"I wasn't planning on separating you two," Sirius smiled. "I'll just write to them and tell them what I said I would," he smiled at Draco, "I'll explain how you and Anica knew each other for all those years and how you're really on our side and whatnot, but I won't tell them any of your personal secrets," he turned to his beaming daughter, "Or yours."

Anica looked up at Draco, and he realized she was staring at him for him to answer. "Alright," he grinned. "I'll do this dinner thing with all of them. Just cause I don't trust any of them with Ani though. And don't get me wrong Sirius. You may be her father, but I'll still kill you if I have to. You better not hurt her."

"God Draco," the blushing girl rolled her eyes, "You're so embarrassing."

Laughing at the scene in front of him, Sirius grabbed papers and a pen so that he could write out two letters. He explained to Anica that he saw her owl his first night at her house, when she was in the shower, and that he sent out an owl to Remus Lupin, who is her godfather, and that he suspected her of knowing somebody in the magical world, but that he never imagined it to be Draco Malfoy. He had to admit though. He was very glad that it is him and not someone else. Draco is proving to be very worthy enough of protecting Anica. It looks like he puts her first every time before himself or anyone else. Sirius liked that. And Anica trusted Draco, which was a very good thing.

_Moony, _

_ You told! But I thank you. I was still playing the pet role. Come to find out, she knows all about me, not that I'm her father, but of my name and how I was in Azkaban. She knows everything about this world. Come to find out she was being kicked by some older school boys when she was seven and Draco Malfoy came to her rescue. They've been inseparable ever since. He's free from Azkaban and came straight to her, and before I could attack, she was crying over him and healing him up, crying about how she thought he was killed in the war. I listened to them for a good four hours before I got Harry's letter. Draco held his wand out to me, but realized I was her father, and she noticed it as well when she saw how similar we look alike. Tell the others for me will you? He's a good person and he really did fight on our side. I promised I wouldn't give out secrets I heard, but Lucius abused him and Narcissa. He was forced with the Cruciatus Curse to become a Death Eater. I believe him. They're close. They didn't even realize they were family, but they were calling each other blood siblings. We're going to do a dinner. I'm sending Harry those details, so I'll have him meet with you. But yes, I trust Draco. I'm even calling him my nephew now. I pity the boy and my daughter. Both seemed to have it rough. I learned while listening in on them, that there are two sides to every story. Can you believe I actually cried while I listened to his? Lucius is a sick bastard and he deserves life in Azkaban. I'll explain more when I see you. Give my love to Tonks and Teddy._

_ - Padfoot_

_ Harry,_

_ Thank you for sending that letter. Now my daughter knows me. We'll love to do a dinner. How's three nights from now at Grimmauld Place? Say seven? Of course, this means everyone better be there. I want to show off how beautiful my daughter is. Oh, and Draco Malfoy will be attending as well. I explained it to Moony so talk to him, but I'll explain a little more when I see you. He's a good guy actually. And Anica loves him like a brother. They've known each other since they were just seven and she refuses to give him up. He's here right now actually. Nearly hexed me when he realized the dog he's been petting is Sirius Black, thought I was trying to hurt Anica until he put two and two together. All these years they thought her being a Black was just a coincidence. And while I was listening in on them – don't tell him I told you this part – he had only nice things to say about each of you. And Anica seems to know all about you lot as well. It seems that Draco has been keeping her extremely well informed over the years. He even brought her an owl before his first day at Hogwarts so they could write every day. Give my love to everyone, will you?_

_ - Padfoot_

**A/N: I know this chapter is short, but the next one will be longer. Promise! And the next chapter is when Charlie finally comes in so yayyy. What do you think will happen in the next chapter? Will everyone think Sirius has lost his mind or will they turn against Anica for having such a relationship with Draco?**


	5. The Godson, The Daughter, and The Nephew

The Godson, The Daughter, and The Nephew

Leaning with her back against the kitchen counter top, Anica began to nervously chew on her bottom lip as the laughter from the living room area flooded in to her ears. Everyone seemed to quickly love her, even gaining her the unwanted eyes of Ronald Weasley, who Harry turned against when Draco threatened him. It's only been one hour, but Harry and Draco both already made some sort of pack. Because Draco was already her brother and Harry was her godbrother, the two of them both vowed to make her life a hell. Hermione and Ginny both seemed to take an instant liking to her, excited to finally have another girl in the group, while Tonks squealed at the excitement of having not just one cousin, but two. Sirius explained that the only way his daughter would accept anything to do with any of them is if they accepted Draco, which surprisingly nobody minded at all. They already knew he changed, which is why they helped to release him from Azkaban.

Molly Weasley was already treating her like a daughter; which admiringly was annoyingly and disgustingly sweet. Remus was bragging that she was his goddaughter, and the twins were both trying to get her to do some pranks with them. Being the daughter of Sirius Black, they were convinced she had to have some sorts of tricks up her sleeves. Arthur Weasley was so impressed with each piercing and the fact that she turned down getting her magic back, that he was bombarding her with questions of the muggle world, so she escaped the mess once nobody was looking her way.

"You should get used to it," came a husky voice from the kitchen's entrance way, causing her to jump up. Chuckling, Charlie Weasley leaned next to her. "Sorry, didn't mean to scare you."

Charlie Weasley; the dragon tamer. And the only one who wasn't suffocating her. Not that she would have minded being suffocated by him… or his copper colored locks that ran rogue on his head falling in front of his deep ocean blue eyes. His plain white t-shirt hugged his chest tightly; showing off every bulging muscle while the faded blue jeans had rips and tears throughout it. Realizing that he caught her staring at him, she blushed and turned away. "Sorry."

He chuckled. Of course, having his looks, body, and job, Charlie was used to girls staring at him, but this time it hadn't annoyed him. In fact, he found himself staring at her just as much. He was already amazed with her tattoos and each piercing on her face that her clothing made him want to just take her right then and there; tiny black jean shorts with a simple plain white baby tee, and a pink diamond in her navel. Her hair fell loosely just past her thighs, but he had never seen anyone more beautiful in his life. "Don't be," he winked down at her. "That's what it's there for."

"Anica," Ron came bursting into the kitchen, his own red hair flapping behind him and his blue eyes glowing with excitement. "I've been looking everywhere for you."

Holding in a chuckle as the girl groaned, Charlie looked at his youngest brother, "What is everyone doing, Ron?"

"Talking about something the twins just did," he shrugged his shoulders then turned back to Anica, "So what's it like being the daughter of Sirius?"

Just as she was about to groan again, Anica heard a baby cry, "Oh, Teddy's crying. Let me go see if Tonks needs any help. Excuse me."

If she were to look back she would have seen a red faced Ron Weasley and a very amused looking Charlie Weasley. She followed the noises until she found the source. Tonks had her usual short bubblegum pink hair while wearing beige jeans and a cute purple top. In her arms was a bright blue haired chubby baby with neon colored eyes. He was screaming his head off while Tonks bounced him in her arms, pacing back and forth.

"Do you mind if I try?" Anica asked, walking up to them.

Stopping in her tracks, Tonks looked almost desperate, "Oh, please."

Smiling, Anica took the screaming baby into her arms and cuddled him tightly against her large chest then started to gently rock him, "Shush now darling. What is all this crying for, huh Teddy?"

Amazed with how quickly her son stopped making any sounds at all, Tonks grinned, "Thanks. You know, you're pretty good at that."

"We used to live in this flat," Anica explained. "And the one right above ours used to run a daycare. So I would help out as much as I could. Draco used to help out to sometimes."

"Really?" Tonks raised an eyebrow. "I can't picture him as the baby type."

She laughed. "He's actually really sweet with kids, better than me actually."

Plopping herself down on a cushioned chair, Tonks let out a loud sigh. "All he does is scream now and no matter what Remus or myself does, he won't stop."

"Bouncing is good," Anica nodded her head, continuing to rock Teddy, "But sometimes they like to rock or be talked to. Once I even caught Draco singing to one of the babies we used to help watch."

Unable to hold back the laugh that escaped her lips, Tonks flew her hands to her mouth. "Now that's something that I really can't see."

"Yeah, he was annoyed when I caught him, and threatened to hex me if I told anyone," Anica also laughed. Feeling a soft finger tug on one of her curls, she looked down and opened her mouth in a wide grin at the chuckling baby, "Well hello there darling. And are you having fun pulling on my hair?"

Listening to her son giggle in the arms of the younger girl, Tonks grinned. "He likes you, you know. He normally screams if anyone else holds him, except for Harry. He loves Harry."

"It must be the whole godfather thing."

After a couple more minutes of talking in the tiny room that they were in, Tonks followed Anica and Teddy out. Tonks offered to take her son back, but Anica just declined. She told Tonks to take a little break; that Teddy would be fine, and they were going to be in the same area. Molly grinned with excitement when she saw how comfortable the newcomer was when she was holding such a young baby, while Draco and Sirius both glared in annoyance. No one seemed to notice the red head quietly watching the scene from the corner though; the way the smile crept up on his face while admiration filled his eyes. No one noticed him… nobody except for the twins. Grinning over at each other then back at Charlie, they turned to watch Anica as well. It was quite a sight to see, actually: the young seventeen year old, cradling the cooing baby in her arms and sitting next to Draco as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

"Wotcher!" Tonks grinned, throwing herself down into the lap of her husband.

"You look like a natural, Anica," Remus grinned, running his fingers through his wife's hair. "Teddy seems to like you."

"I used to help baby-sit before."

Tonks couldn't help but to admire the way she didn't give out Draco's secret, feeling as if no one else needed to know such a thing about him. "So Sirius," Fred said, keeping his mischievous grin on his face.

"You ready to be-"

"A grandfather then-"

"Eh!" the two twins finished together.

While the twins continued grinning, Charlie and Anica both turned scarlet red, while Sirius, Remus, and Draco all began to choke on nothing. Ron had a glazed look on his face while Hermione, Ginny, and Tonks all burst into tiny giggles. Harry, Molly, and Arthur all remained passive, showing no emotions.

After a minute of choking on air, Sirius finally remembered how to breathe and glared at the two twins, "I just got back into being a father again, I'd rather not think of being a grandfather-" turning a softened glare to his, still red faced, daughter who was trying to avoid everyone's eyes, he told her, "Until another twenty years."

"I agree with Sirius on that one," the statement, shockingly came from the red faced Charlie, causing Draco to cock an eyebrow at the elbowing twins. "You're still too young, Anica."

Simply nodding her head, Anica traced her finger alongside the baby's face, "Mhmm, yeah, don't worry about it guys. No kids for me."

"Not yet anyways!" the two twins said together, causing them a glare from everyone in the room.

Charlie sat between Sirius and Remus while they had a conversation about inviting Anica to live with Sirius. Harry joined in on their conversation and quickly agreed that it was for the best. Everyone knew that if anything were to happen to Sirius everything would become Harry's, but now that it was known about his daughter and she was back in his life, Harry was more than willing to give everything to her. He said that he wouldn't want it knowing about her. Charlie kept his eyes on the three girls though. Anica was now standing in one of the corners, rocking baby Teddy to sleep, while Hermione and Ginny laughed with her about something. He knew that it was wrong, but something about seeing her with a baby. It just felt so right. Of course though, only if that baby had his hair and her eyes.

"Draco," Sirius said, calling to the boy who was laughing between the twins, "Come here for a second."

Taking the seat next to Harry and right across from the other three, Draco looked at Sirius, "Yeah?"

"Well I was telling these three about the creatures from hell that Anica is currently living with, and how you wanted her to live with you once she makes the legal age."

Nodding his head, Draco already had a feeling where this was going. He thought about it as well, once it was out in the open that Sirius was her father. "But of course she doesn't want to. The thought of living with me in a Manor sickens her."

Laughing, Harry placed a hand on his new ally's shoulder, "Is it the thought of the Manor or just the thought of living with you?"

"Does she hate big places?" although he tried to hide it, you could see the worry in Sirius's eyes.

"No," Draco shook his head, "She just hates the Manor. I snuck her there a couple of times before and she could hear my father torturing someone. Ever since then, she refused to go anywhere near the Malfoy Manor."

"Oh," there was a soft sigh of relief, but he shuddered at the thought of his daughter witnessing or hearing such an ordeal. "Well, we were all talking and we all agreed that she should come live here with Charlie and I, but I was wondering how you would feel about that. Of course, you can come here as often as you like. Move in even, if you would prefer."

Draco smiled. He liked how they all wanted his approval and how quick they were to accept that he wouldn't trust them alone with Anica. It wasn't that he didn't think they were good people for her, it's just that he and Anica both learned at a very young age that you can't trust anybody anymore. They were the only two people who hadn't abandoned the other. "I think it's a brilliant idea actually. And I know you don't actually want me here Sirius, but I will be visiting of course."

"Yes of course," Sirius grinned. "What about you, Charlie?"

Hearing someone call his name, Charlie tore his attention away from Anica who was now grinning back at him, "Huh? Oh… umm yeah, it's a good idea."

Remus and Draco both shared the same odd look with each other, before turning to look at a now blushing Anica. "Don't you live in Romania?" Draco asked him.

"Used to," he shrugged his shoulders, "I left a year before the war, and have been staying here ever since."

The answer annoyed Draco. "The war's over now. Are you going to go back?"

"They transferred me over to Wales," he shook his head. "I'm here permanently now."

The thought of a hormonal Anica living under the same roof of an extremely well built and attractive Charlie Weasley annoyed Draco, but he knew that she needed to get out of that prison she was staying in. "Do you have to wait until she's eighteen?" he asked Sirius.

Jumping in his place as the idea hit him, Sirius grinned, "Well I guess not, eh. In the wizarding world, seventeen is the legal age. And if we go to Kingsley, he could get her out of that house by next week."

"Good," Draco grinned, and Harry noticed the sigh of relief. "The quicker she gets out of that prison, the quicker I can kill that rat and the bloody plum."

"Hear, hear," Sirius agreed.

Harry felt a familiar twinge of fear flood through him. Sirius told him about Anica's living arrangements, and he agreed that the Dursleys were heroes compared to those people. "But of course Draco," he warned him, "It wouldn't do Anica any good having her brother in Azkaban, now would it?"

"Nor the father she just reacquainted with," added Remus for a good measure.

Scowling, both Draco and Sirius just pouted, "Yeah, yeah."

After nearly half an hour of talking to Hermione and Ginny about what Draco is really like and if it's true that all these eleven years, they've been best friends without knowing she had any magical blood in her, Anica got a little bored. Hermione and Ginny were both really fun and they were easy to talk to, but all they wanted to talk about was Draco. She knew that Ginny was with Harry and thought they made a cute couple: his unruly jet-black hair with emerald green eyes and the lightning bolt scar on his forehead that started right at his hairline and ended right above his silver rimmed glasses mixed with Ginny's shining straight red hair and light blue eyes. She imagined Ginny's light brown freckles lined along Harry's eyes and unruly red hair. It was a cute image.

Then her eyes went to Hermione, the girl who laughed with dimples. This was the main person she's grown up hearing about from when they were just eleven. In the beginning she thought that Hermione Granger was more important than Harry Potter was. She was the only person Draco seemed to ever write about. Her hair wasn't bushy though, and Anica knew that Draco was personally glad for his misaimed hex, causing her to no longer have beaver teeth. She was actually really pretty. Soft caramel curls that bounced just past her shoulders with coffee colored eyes that seemed to always twinkle, especially when they found their way to a certain blonde. Her blue Capri's and red colored halter top showed that she did in fact have curves.

"Do you need any help in here Mrs. Weasley?" Anica asked, finally managing to escape the questioning girls and go back into the kitchen. She's seen Draco cook using magic before, so she wasn't all that surprised to see the pots and pans stirring themselves while the vegetables cut themselves.

Turning to the girl, Molly Weasley saw she was still holding the sleeping baby in her arms and smiled, "Don't be silly dear, I can handle this. Are you alright?"

"Yeah," sitting down at the table, she continued to slowly rock Teddy who was gripping tightly onto her shirt while softly snoring. "I'm fine. I just can't believe they all left you alone in here."

"The kitchen is where I'm normally found," she laughed, directing one of the pots to drain itself. "They all know to leave me alone when I'm in here."

"Oh," quickly jumping to her feet, Anica started to leave, "I didn't know. Sorry for bothering you."

"No, no," Molly simply placed her arms on her shoulders, leading her back to the table, "It's quite alright. I don't mind you at all. They usually come in here shouting, and trying to sneak food while I try to cook."

Laughing, Anica pushed a strand of her own hair behind her ear, "Sounds like Draco. He would come over sometimes and help me make dinner, but when it was time to actually eat it, most of the food would already be gone."

"Just like all my boys," Molly sighed, turning back to the stove. "Are you alright with Teddy, dear? You have been holding him quite a while; would you like someone to take over?"

Shaking her head, she smiled back down at the sleeping child, "No, it's alright. I like the feeling of having a child to hold. Makes me feel relaxed you know."

"I do," she sighed again, but this time with a grin on her face. "It's what led me to having seven of them, you know," when she heard the young girl laugh again, she raised a curious eyebrow at her, "But Sirius is right too you know, you're much too young for your own kids."

Looking as if she wanted to run and hide away, Anica quickly shook her head, "Oh, god no. I'm not planning on having one soon. You don't need to worry about that, nor anyone else for that matter. I just meant that I wouldn't mind watching Teddy for Tonks or Remus anytime they asked, is all."

"Very well," Molly smiled again, but this smile was different. There was an almost twinkle in this smile. As if she knew something that Anica didn't.

By the time seven came, they were all laughing and sitting around the dining room table. Anica laid Teddy down in a playpen while he continued to sleep so she could eat in peace, while Tonks and Remus came downstairs after looking like they just woke up from a long needed nap. Anica couldn't help but to smile when she saw Sirius practically forcing Molly and Arthur to both sit at the heads of the table, saying that they were the heads of this family. It was nice seeing the sweet side to the ex-criminal that Draco warned her about when they were thirteen. George sat next to his dad with Anica on his opposite side and Fred sandwiching her in. Then there was Draco, Harry, and Ginny then Molly. Across from George sat Sirius, then Charlie, Ron, Hermione, Remus, and Tonks.

"This is splendid, Molly," Sirius grinned, biting into his pot roast, "Just like always."

Still becoming embarrassed even after years of having her food praised, Molly blushed. "Thank you, Sirius."

"So Anica," Sirius said, looking across at his daughter, who just got done praising a blushing Molly as well, "Charlie and I were both talking, with Draco of course," he noticed the way his daughter leaned over to glance at a nodding Draco before looking back at him, "And we were wondering if you would want to move in here with us."

"What?" she meant to show her excitement, because she's been expecting something like this and couldn't wait to move in here so she could get to know her father, but she didn't know that Charlie was living here either.

Fred and George both grinned at each other over the short head of the surprised girl, while Sirius looked sort of… well confused. "Only if you want to," he quickly told her, taking her surprise as anger at such an idea. "I don't want to pressure you into moving too quickly into this. I mean, you did only learn about me three days ago."

"Huh?" her mind was still trying to process the fact that she would be living under the same roof of the very red head who was making her knickers soak right now. She saw that everyone was staring at her, including the dragon tamer.

Confused as to why Anica was so shocked, Draco spoke up now, "He even plans on going down to the Minister of Magic's office tomorrow Ani, to ask him to get you out of Margo and Edward's care. In the wizarding world, you're already of age, and seeing as how he is your father, he could gain quick custody of you."

"You could be living here by next week," Remus added in, already having a feeling of why his goddaughter almost dropped her fork at the idea of moving in with her father. He had an inkling that it had to do with a certain Weasley living under the same roof.

"Oh," trying to hide her blushing face by staring down at the food in front of her, she nodded her head, "I-I didn't mean to sound so shocked. Honestly, I've been waiting for you to ask me from the minute I found out you were my father. I-I guess-" she had to think up of a lie quickly. She also had to make sure that Draco wasn't paying any attention to her. He always knew when she was lying by the way her eyes lightened by just a shade. "I guess that hearing it is actually different than thinking it."

They could all see the relief in Sirius's face. He was scared, thinking he took a step out of bounds. "So what do you say then, love? Do you want to move in here?"

"Okay," she nodded her head, looking up and seeing the excitement in her father's eyes. "Yeah, I do. Thanks."

Everyone else took the grin on her face as excitement. Except for Draco, he knew that she forced it. Giving her an odd look, she simply shook her head at him, which said, _I'm fine, just nervous. I actually have a father now. This is finally happening, and it's all so real._ Draco nodded his head at her, letting her know that he would accept that for now.

"Great!" Sirius conjured up wine bottles and poured glasses all around. "Here's to me having the most beautiful daughter in the world, and finally having her living with me where she belongs."

"Hear, hear!" grinned a very flirtatious Charlie Weasley, winking across at her.

Laughter flooded the very large mansion once more as the wine started to kick in. Arthur and Remus were congratulating Sirius on his daughter while Molly and Tonks began fussing over Ginny about Harry. Anica looked over at Draco and was glad to see that he was in a very giggling conversation with Hermione, while Ron and Harry were in an extremely heated conversation about Quidditch. Feeling eyes on her, very familiar feeling eyes, she looked up and caught a quick glance of red cheeks before Charlie joined in on the Quidditch conversation.

"So Anica darling-" Fred started the conversation. It was easy for her to tell the twins apart. In her eyes, Fred's dark blue was just one shade off from George's dark blues. Other than that, every strand of red locks and every freckle had been identical to the tee.

Taking a sip of her wine, she looked up at him, "Yes Fred, dear."

"Welcome to the family then, eh," winked George.

"Of course we don't just mean-"

"This lovely dysfunctional family-"

"That are feasting before your-"

"Lovely little flaming eyes-"

"We simply mean-"

"Welcome to the-"

"Weasley clan!" they both nudged her, finishing their sentence together.

Feeling her cheeks burning, she ignored the eyes piercing into her very soul from across the table. "I don't know what you two are going on about," lifting up her wine glass, she finished it in a large gulp, earning grins from the twins once more.

"We don't mean-"

"To embarrass you, love-"

"But we simply wanted-"

"You to know-"

"That we know-"

"Because you see, you can't-"

"Hide anything from us-"

"We Weasley twins see-"

"Everything that you don't-"

"Want us to see."

Continuing to avoid the stares coming from across the table, she managed to look up and catch the way Remus, Arthur, and her father were all staring at her. If it was possible, she turned even a darker shade of red. It looked as if they could hear the twins' jaunting.

"Are you sure you don't want Demon to stay with you then, love?" Sirius asked, as he walked his daughter and Draco towards the entrance.

Nodding her head, she smiled at Draco who continued to walk as they stopped to give them some privacy. "Draco will stay with me. They're both scared of him. He has a nasty habit of using two of the unforgivable curses on people who hurt me."

"This is the one time I approve of it then," he grinned. Shifting on his feet, he lowered his voice. "Are you alright, love? I mean with me offering you to stay here? It wasn't too soon was it?"

"No," she smiled to assure him, "I mean it wasn't too soon. I meant it when I said that I was waiting for you to ask me to move in here with you. I was just caught off guard, is all."

"Are you sure?" he asked her. "I don't want to pressure you into being my daughter too soon. If you want, I could rent you out your own flat or something. Anywhere you want, just as long as I get you out of that horrid prison."

Laughing at the words she's heard from Draco many times as well, she placed her hands on his shoulder. His six foot flat was massive compared to her five foot two. "I want to live here. With you-" and of course the gorgeous red head who was making her insides throb with want and need, "I've spent sixteen years of my life not having any parents and for ten of those years, Draco was the only person I could depend on. I like having a father, especially one who wants to know me. I mean it Dad," the word brought smiles onto both their faces; "I want to move in."

"Excellent," he grinned excitedly again, before pulling her into a tight embrace, "And I promise you, love, I'll get you out of there as soon as possible. Once Kingsley gives me the okay, I'll be there to pick you up, alright."

"Alright," her grin was also filled with excitement, but more so because a certain red head was standing across from them in a distance with his back turned towards her. "And don't worry, I'll be fine. Draco will be with me the entire time."

"Very well," releasing her, he walked her back to the patiently waiting Draco Malfoy. "Draco, I know I can trust you with her. You seem to have done a good job of protecting her these past eleven years. And my offer still stands with you as well."

Grabbing onto the girl's hand, Draco politely smiled and shook his head, "No thanks, Sirius. After she's safe in here with you, I should really go see my mum. She knows that I'm out, because of _The Daily Prophet_, but I still haven't seen her yet. I'll be around though."

"I would hope so," he chuckled, patting Draco's back then hugging his daughter once more, "Well off you two go then. Owl me or floo me if you need anything. I'll see you both soon."

**A/N: Woohoo Charlie's finally in it. And trust me… he'll be in a lot more now. So what do you guys think is going to happen? Next chapter someone else gets involved. Who will it be? And where are my Dramione fans? I know this is going to be mainly about Anica and Charlie, but I'm a huge Dramione lover so trust me… there will be more of them! please review.(:**


	6. Jobs and Quidditch

Jobs and Quidditch

"Hurry up with those _Fainting Fancies, _will you Fred!" George shouted from behind the counter.

It's been two weeks since Anica's been living with her father and Charlie, and she was going crazy in number 12 Grimmauld Place. Not the idea of living there, but the idea of being so close to Charlie and not being able to do anything about it. She's been spending a good part of her nights locking her bedroom door, and allowing her fingers to put her to sleep while she thought of a certain copper haired man. And it was annoying the hell out of her; she was usually so good at keeping her hormones locked up.

This morning was almost the death of her. When she went down for breakfast, the ugly looking Kreacher informed her that Sirius had left for a meeting with the Minister of Magic, Kingsley Shacklebolt. Not thinking anything of her father being gone, she sat down at the table, thanking the ugly little house elf for her eggs and bacon, when _he_ came downstairs. If he was stunned to see her sitting there in nothing more than just a plain black t-shirt and no shorts, he didn't say anything whereas she started to choke on a piece of toast; breathless at the sight of him wearing strictly only black and red plaid boxers.

So now she was here, dressed in long blue jeans and a simple red colored baby tee, about to bother the Weasley twins. "Hey George."

Turning around, George grinned, "Hey Anica. What are you doing here? I'm surprised your dad let you out to play."

"Or Draco for that fact," grinned a box wielding Fred.

Rolling her eyes, she pushed her hair out of her face. "Ha-ha-ha," she slightly smiled. "I'm going crazy in that house."

"Could it be due to a-" said Fred.

"Certain red headed brother-" said George.

"Of ours?" they both finished off together.

Feeling her cheeks betray her with their heat, Anica shook her head, "Of course not," she tried to convince them, but the looks on their faces told her they weren't convinced. "I have nothing to do all day. My dad and I seem to be all caught up on the sixteen years of life that he missed out on of mine. It's just boring now."

"And you thought-" George.

"That we could provide-" Fred.

"You with such fun," the both of them finished together once again.

"Well actually," she bit on her bottom lip. "I heard that you guys were looking to hire somebody. And I'm not completely new to the whole magic thing, and I have had jobs in the past," when they both just raised their eyebrows at her, then each other then back at her, the biting of her lip turned into chewing. "I was sort of hoping you guys would do it as a favor? Please?"

"Why would you wanna work?" asked Fred.

Nodding his head in agreement, George absentmindedly began to wipe up the counter top. "Yeah, Sirius is one of the richest wizards in the world, being a part of the Black family and all."

"He'll buy you anything you want." Fred.

"Trips to Paris-" George.

"Egypt-" Fred.

"Romania-" they both grinned and winked.

"America-" George.

"Hawaii-" Fred.

"Italy!" George.

"I don't wanna do that," she shook her head, slightly annoyed at such an idea. "If I wanted to just stay on my arse all day using other people's money then I would've took up Draco's offer years ago."

Fred frowned at his brother who just shrugged his shoulders at him. "But Sirius isn't just anybody. He's your father now, Anica."

"I know," she sighed, "But it doesn't matter. I have to do something. I'm not the type of girl who just uses other people's money. I have to have a job, you know; feel like I earned it."

George was hesitant. After a couple silent seconds he sighed. "I don't know, Anica. I don't think Sirius would like you working. Did you discuss this with him?"

"No," her eyebrows furrowed now. "I don't need his permission to get a job. And I don't want it. I came here hoping you guys would help me out so that my first job in the wizarding world would be comfortable with people I trusted, but I see that's not going to happen," dropping her body in defeat, she started walking towards the door. "Thanks anyways guys."

Annoyed with the twins for suggesting that she needed permission from her father, of all people, to get a job – a guy that she's only known for two weeks, not counting the one week he pretended to a stray dog – she started walking down Diagon Alley. She knew only one other person who owned a shop down here, and he would most likely give her a job. Blaise Zabini; Draco's only real best friend and the one person that she met a couple of times. During the summer before their second year, Blaise's mum's new boyfriend beat him to a bloody pulp and he went to Draco for help. Scared and unsure of what to do, Draco took him to her.

Blaise was shocked when he learned that Draco was best friends with a muggle, but he accepted it. They became friends as well over the years, of course not as close as her and Draco, but close enough to write a couple letters back and forth over the years and send a few Christmas and birthday gifts as well. Blaise would even accompany Draco to muggle London to visit her, a couple of times.

Draco wrote to him the day he finally returned home to his mother, telling him about how Anica was the daughter of Sirius Black, and Blaise found it hilarious. All this time they thought they were friends with a muggle, but she's actually a Black. He thought it was amusing. He wrote a letter to her the very same day, congratulating her on being a part of the 'cool kids' now and asking her how she's been. She learned that the only reason he didn't write to tell her that Draco was alive and sent to Azkaban, was because he didn't know if his friend would survive in there or not. It made sense when he explained it to her. He didn't want to get her hopes up of Draco being alive, only to have him die a couple of days later.

He explained how he hadn't even bothered to write to tell her that Draco was out of Azkaban once it hit _The Daily Prophet_ because he already knew that he was with her. She explained how she understood, and she would have liked to know that he was alive as well, seeing as how she cares for him like a friend too, and asked him how he was doing since the war. She was shocked to hear that he now owned _Quality Quidditch Supplies_; the shop that sold anything from a broom to books on Quidditch to broom supplies, robes for Quidditch, and anything and everything having to do with brooms, and/or Quidditch. Apparently after the war the shops original owner had been all too quick to leave wizarding London, and move somewhere else. Somewhere that doesn't have so much mayhem. Blaise brought the shop from him, and all the original employees immediately quit. So right now it was just him running the shop.

Opening the door and entering inside, her eyes widened at the shop. She's been in here a couple of times before; it was always Draco's favorite shop, and even Blaise would drag her in here the few times they've come together. It seemed so different now. So much more organized and better. The shop was now separated into sections, instead of having everything just piled in one section. Walls were decorated with each Quidditch team, lining from one end to the other. Colors of pale blue and silver, black and scarlet, orange and black, light green and scarlet vertical stripes, dark gray and white, dark green and golden, and so many more of the Quidditch teams colors, taking over the wall.

While international Quidditch teams robes, crests, fan colored brooms, and posters all took over the walls; the center of the store was designated to stacks of books on Quidditch: books on the Quidditch stars, teams, origins, colors, and what their crests meant. There were books on brooms: how to build a broom, how to fix a broom, how to sedate a broom, and so much more. If anything involved a broom, there was a book on it right there. Then there were the actual brooms, along with fix it kits and polishing kits and what not, right there in the front of the store. There was a corner with Quidditch supplies that she was sure would make Ron, Harry, and Draco all weak in the knees.

"Can I help you?" questioned a familiar sounding voice.

"I hope so," grinning and turning around, she heard the gasp as Blaise recognized her.

He definitely grew up from when she last saw him, just like Draco, but for different reasons. Draco grew up and gained muscles because he was no longer being beaten and tortured and had to fight to survive in Azkaban, whereas Blaise now owned a Quidditch and broom store and had to be stocky to handle most of his clients. He was no longer the same scrawny toothpick she had remembered. He still stood at six foot one, but his body had muscles to it now, proving that she couldn't snap him in half anymore. His smooth olive skin had a more natural glow to it now while he scratched the short soft black curls that sat up on his head. His lime green eyes stared at her, while dimples formed with his grin. He was wearing long black jeans and a buttoned down white long sleeve. He still had handsome boyish looks to him, but he was definitely no longer a boy.

"Ani," he chuckled, walking over to her and pulling her into a hug. "Two weeks you've been living with Black, and only now you come and visit me. What the hell?"

Chuckling as well, she ran her hand through his hair, tussling it a bit, "Sorry, love. I've been trying to get used to the idea of having a dad, you know. Today's the first day I actually left the place."

"By yourself?" his eyebrow raised in confusion as he looked around for a chaperone he was sure she would have.

Nodding her head, she rolled her eyes at him, "Oh c'mon Blaise. Not you too?"

"What do you mean not me too?"

"Nobody seems to trust that I should be alone."

"Of course you shouldn't," he spoke to her as if she were mental. "You're the renounced daughter of Sirius Black. Do you have any idea how many people would want you dead or kidnapped for ransom? What the hell are you doing in Diagon Alley on your own, anyway? Does Draco know you're here?"

"Would I be in this shop on my own if he did?" crossing her arms over her chest, she sighed. "I was suffocating in that place. I went to the twins hoping they would give me a job, but then they said it wouldn't be a good idea and that I need permission from my dad. A dad I just met two weeks ago now mind you."

Laughing, Blaise shook his head at her, "Weasley one and Weasley two turned you away and you came here eh?"

Putting her two hands together, she bared her teeth with the wide grin she was now flashing. "Please Blaise. I'm good with jobs. I used to work before."

"I remember," he nodded his head with a roll of his eyes. "Draco dragged me to that cinnamon thing so we could see you at work."

"Cinema," she corrected him. "And see," she nodded her head with a proud grin, "And I've kept that job for two years. The only reason I left it was because I was about ready to ask Draco to hex the new manager; filthy, disgusting twat."

Laughing, Blaise stared at her then laughed again. "Alright. But only because I'm going crazy trying to run this place myself. And nobody wants to work with an ex-Death Eater."

"Thanks," she jumped up and down before taking him in a hug. "You won't regret this. When do you want me to start?"

"Now if you can," his eyes pleaded with her to say she could. "I'm still trying to set a few things up and today's being really busy."

After showing her how to work a magical cash register and pointing out what everything was and where everything was, Blaise went back into the shop's storage room, trying to unpack more boxes. He had no doubt that Anica would be alright on her own, and she knew to call him if she needed help with anything. Draco would be furious with him once he found out that he hired her without his consent, and he had no doubt that Black or Potter or any of the Weasleys would feel the same way, but he shrugged the thought away. He needed an employee, and Anica was a friend of his. He cared for her in almost the same sense as Draco did. Granted, he's only met her when they were twelve, but that's only one year less than when Potter and Weasley knew Granger.

He wasn't as close to her as Draco was, but he liked to think they were close enough. Draco was bloodied in the Manor one night, unable to move or breathe, and Blaise ran to Anica for help. He went on his own, but what he found that night is what brought them as close as they are. Before that night, she's always been hesitant with him; scared that he would betray Draco – she didn't care if he would hurt her, she just didn't want him hurting Draco – but that night changed everything. That night he found the man who adopted her, kicking her while she was bleeding on the ground. Blaise attacked him – Edward was that rat's name; running at him with a strong force, Blaise had him on the ground and didn't stop banging his head into the floor until Anica was crying for him to stop. He took her back to his own Manor that night. That was the night he nursed them both back to health, and that was the night Anica learned she could trust him.

Of course, she didn't trust him as much as she trusted Draco, but that was inevitable. She would never trust anyone more than she trusted Draco. There were things about her that only Draco knew and things about Draco that only she knew. She and Blaise knew enough secrets about each other, but there were still some hidden thoughts. Between her and Draco though… nothing was hidden.

"Not bad for your first day in a wizarding shop," Blaise grinned as he flipped the open sign to shut.

Tugging on the bottom of her shirt, and not caring that she was flashing skin, Anica grinned as she wiped away the sweat on her forehead. "Really? Thanks. I was pretty nervous that I mucked it all up."

"It's your first day, Ani," Blaise rolled his eyes, pulling himself onto the counter. "I didn't expect you to get everything perfect. It's not like you're supposed to know all the teams colors by heart."

"But the _Kenamare Kestrals,_" she shook her head, "And the _Montrose Magpies_? How the hell do I mix those two up? One is emerald and yellow while the other is black and white."

He didn't mean to, but he laughed. It was just such a cute sight to him. Her lips were pouting once more; a habit she always had. He learned that about her by his fourth time being with her. She always pouted and she always bit or chewed on her lip. She also had an identical smirk and sneer to Draco's, it was quite scary actually. "Don't worry about it," he told her. "You'll get it."

"I hope so."

Hearing the desperation in her voice, he got an idea. Jumping off the counter, he ran towards the center of the store. "Give me a minute," he shouted at her.

Still standing behind the counter, Anica watched him run back and forth as if he were losing his mind. "What are you doing?" she shouted at him.

After three minutes of continuously running around and avoiding her question, he returned with a couple of books in his hands. "Take these," he told her, placing them on the counter. When he saw her go to open her mouth, he rolled his eyes, already knowing what she was going to say. "I own the shop, including everything in it. And you work here, meaning you're entitled to discounts and free things, besides these will help you out in learning about Quidditch. It should teach you everything that you need to know. Draco told me that you told Black that you didn't want your magic back. Is that true?"

"Yeah."

"Then no sense in giving you a broom right now," he suppressed a chuckle when he saw the confusion in her eyes as she picked up the books. "_Flying with Cannons_," he said, holding up an orange colored book with people flying on brooms. "A book devoted strictly to the _Chudley Cannons_, a brilliant team if you ask me," then holding up a gold and black colored book that had just one single man flying on a broom on the cover, he said, "_He Flew Like A Madman_, based on Dai Llewellyn, the author of," he held up another rather large brown colored book, "_Quidditch Through The Ages_. This book will teach you all there is to know about Quidditch."

"_Quidditch Teams of Ireland and Britain_?" she asked, grabbing the last book.

Grinning, Blaise gently caressed that book, "It will teach you all about the teams."

"Thanks," Anica grinned, grabbing all the books. "I guess I should go straight home and start reading these then, eh? What time should I be back tomorrow?"

"We open at eight," he informed her, walking with her to the door, "But I like to be here an hour before."

"So seven then," she nodded her head. "What time should I tell my dad I'll be home by? Seeing as how I guess I should tell him I have a job now."

"The shop closes at five every day," he nodded his head. "Do you think you could work Monday through Saturday? We're closed on Sunday though, but other than that, do you think you could work every day? The pays large, seeing as how you're my only employee and will most likely be my only employee for an extremely long time."

"Okay," she smiled, nodding her head again. "And thanks, again, for everything Blaise. For the job and for," she held up the books, "These."

Chuckling, he nodded his own head as well, again. "I'm glad to help you out Ani. It's good to have a friend, you know. And I'm glad to see that you're finally happy for once. And let me know if you want any more books on Quidditch or brooms. Or hell, even if you want a broom or some Quidditch supplies. Even if you weren't working here, I'd still give you free shit. You helped me out just as much as you did Draco, you know. And let your friends know. I know Potter and Weasley are obsessed with it. Potter was Seeker back at Hogwarts, just like Draco. They can get friend's discounts."

"Something tells me they'll take very good advantage of that offer," she laughed, scratching her nose. "In the two weeks that I've known them, it's all they talk about."

"Then tell them to swing by," he grinned. "I'll give them good deals. And let Potter know that we've got in a new _Firebolt, _it's the _Firebolt 2008_."

"Will do," she grinned again, then hugged him. "Thanks again. See you in the morning Blaise."

Charlie was lying on the couch while Sirius sat in the chair that everybody already dubbed as his. It was the only chair in that room that he would sit on, and nobody else dared to. Not even Anica. Not because she was scared to, but just because she thought it was common courtesy. Smelling like sweaty Quidditch players, the flames of the fireplace turned a bright green color, right before Anica stepped out from it. Clutching the books to her chest, she saw her father put down _The Daily Prophet_ and smile up at her, while Charlie gave her a confused look.

"Reading up on Quidditch, eh Nica?" Charlie asked, using the nickname that only he found to be cute.

"As a matter of a fact I am," she grinned, walking over to the couch that he was laying on and lifting up his legs before placing them back down on her lap once she sat down. "I got a job today."

Charlie jumped out of his position just as Sirius jumped in his own seat. "What!" they both shouted.

"At _Quality Quidditch Supplies_," she nodded her head, not allowing them to ruin her excited mood. "Draco and I told all of you that I'm friends with Blaise Zabini as well, right?" when they both nodded their heads with open jaws, she continued, "Well I went to the twins for a job, but they turned me down because they felt you wouldn't approve of me working so I went to Blaise. At first he was somewhat hesitant because I shouldn't be seen so much, but I guess he realized I would just go to another location if he turned me down too. I started today."

Pinching the bridge of his nose, Sirius sighed, "So that's where you were all day. We thought you were at Draco's all this time. You don't need to work, love, I have lots of money. If you wanted anything, you could've just told me."

"It's not about the money," she claimed, rolling her eyes yet again. Another habit of hers, Charlie noticed. "I have nothing to do all day. I'm bored here. And besides, I don't like using other people's money," raising her hand as Sirius opened his mouth, she shook her head, "And no, it doesn't make a difference if you're my father. I just don't like having things given to me. I mean gifts are nice and whatnot, but I don't like having to depend on people for things. Ask Draco, he'll tell you. I've had jobs before, and these past two weeks I've been going crazy locked up in here without having to do anything. Blaise just brought the shop and it's only him working so I figured why not. He has help with the shop and I have something to do. We all win in the end."

Sirius was now rubbing his face while Charlie fought hard to keep his erection down. He's never heard of any female so quick to wanting to work. It was a turn on for him, a female who didn't want to just be spoiled with her father's money, but who actually wanted to get a job and earn it on her own. "It's just I never thought my daughter would have to work," he almost whined. "Especially not after she's living with me. In the wizarding world, women don't usually have jobs. If you haven't noticed, most of the employees are men. There are a few women, but those are the unmarried ones who don't have anyone to support them."

"I don't like being supported," shrugging her shoulders, she pulled both her legs up under her body. "I like supporting myself. I'm sorry Dad, but this is just one of those things that I'm doing whether you like it or not. And I'm not giving it up."

Charlie glanced over at Sirius. Is that pride in his eyes? Then again, it isn't everyday someone stands up to Sirius Black. And then again, it's not every day a rich witch chooses to work. Sometimes not even a poor witch will stand up to work. Look at Ginny and Hermione. "Fine," he nodded his head. "What is your schedule?"

"Monday through Saturday," she grinned and wriggled in her spot, glad to not have to get into an argument with either of them. "The shops are closed on Sundays, and since it's literally just us two, Blaise asked if I would mind working every day with him because the shops really busy and he needs all the help. I'll be there from seven to five every day."

"Seven to five?" he groaned. "Isn't that too long for you? Can't he shorten it?"

Laughing, she shook her head, "It's good enough hours for me. If I can go to school from seven-thirty to three-thirty then work from four to midnight, I can handle these hours. This is nothing to me. I'll still be home early enough to make dinner and eat with you guys."

"Fine," Sirius gave up, knowing that he would lose this battle and he didn't want to fight with his daughter. They just got comfortable enough with each other and he didn't want her to run off after an argument over him not liking her having a job.

"So what are the books for?" Charlie asked, picking them up and scanning through them.

"I know absolutely nothing about Quidditch," she admitted, turning to him. "All the years I've known Draco, and even when I met Blaise; it's all I ever hear about from them, especially when we were fourteen, but I never understood any of it, so Blaise gave me all these books so I could study up on it, to help me at work."

"You work in a Quidditch shop and you know nothing about Quidditch?"

Scratching her hair and scrunching up her nose, Anica let out half a chuckle. "Funny, right? I know. But it's fine. I only messed up once today, and I should learn it this time. I mean with Ron and Harry only talking about Quidditch, and with working in the shop, it should be fine."

"I just don't understand how with eleven years of being best friends with Draco, six years of occasionally hanging out with Blaise Zabini, and two weeks after knowing Harry Potter and Ron Weasley, and you still know nothing about Quidditch," Sirius shook his head. "It's all those four boys ever talk about."

Laughing, Anica shrugged her shoulders, "It's always bored me I guess. I mean they only talk about it. I've never actually seen it before. But today, I got into it: seeing all the people rushing for the robes, and one little girl accidentally set of the one of the snitches, so Blaise had to chase it all around. It's exciting when you see it versus just hearing about it."

"And Zabini thinks you can just learn about it in books?" Charlie asked.

They didn't learn about her friendship with Blaise Zabini until three days after she moved in, which was a week after they all met her. She received a letter from Blaise while everyone was over for dinner again and Sirius nearly hexed the owl just for belonging to a Zabini. Instead of explaining it to them, Draco only laughed. Anica had to explain how she met him when they were twelve and have been friends ever since. She claimed she didn't feel it was important to inform them all of that because he wasn't around and she didn't hang out or talk to him as much as she did with Draco. Harry asked her if there were any more of their enemies that she was close with so they could get all the shock out of their systems then, and she only laughed while shaking her head no. They were all quick to accept Draco because of the circumstance and because Sirius backed him up with what he heard while he was a dog, but they were all still sort of hesitant about Blaise. They wouldn't do anything to him because of Anica, but they were hesitant about him.

"I think you would learn more from 'a hands-on' type of experience," Charlie said.

Watching as he put the books back onto the couch between them, Anica cocked an eyebrow. "Huh?"

"I mean I think you should play Quidditch. Sure you can learn from the books, but you would learn even more by playing it yourself."

"I love Draco, but I've been on the back of a broom with him once before and I refuse to do it ever again," even Sirius had to laugh at the sudden light green features in her face. "He likes to dip and twirl and spin and no, uh-uh, I refuse to go back on a broom with him."

"I could take you," Charlie offered. "On Sunday, let's invite everyone over again for a quick game of Quidditch. We could show you how to play."

Sirius grinned at the idea of everyone coming over on Sunday to play a game of Quidditch. "And Charlie's extremely good at the game. He turned down England to train dragons, you know. Quidditch just runs in his family. Percy's the only one who's never played."

"Really?" this was just one more thing for her to add onto her list of sexy things Charlie Weasley does.

Chuckling, Charlie blushed. "It's nothing much really. I mean everyone here plays it. Besides you and Hermione, of course… well and the older lot. But what do you say? Wanna play it on Sunday?"

"You could even invite Blaise over," Sirius offered. From the moment he found out his daughter had been hanging out with a Zabini as well, he's wanted to meet him. He still found it odd that while he gave up his daughter to keep her hidden from this world, she became best friends with Draco Malfoy, and would hang out with Blaise Zabini from time to time.

"Okay," she nodded her head. "Yeah that sounds good. I'll let him know tomorrow at work."

Kreacher took a liking to Anica; for a reason that none of them could understand. Sirius told them that he treated her as how he used to treat Regulus; more like a friend than a master/mistress or disgusting creature. He knew that she was only a half-blood, but he was more kind to her than he was to anyone else in the house, and ever since she moved in, he listened to her more than he did to Sirius. After tossing all her books into her room, Anica ran down to the kitchen and started helping Kreacher throw together something for dinner. Sirius and Charlie both watched in amazement when the girl laughed with the hideous little thing while he allowed her to cut up vegetables while he stirred the pot. It wasn't in the nature of house-elves to allow any help, but when it came to Anica, Kreacher was more than pleased to welcome her into doing anything she wanted. Where he mumbled under his breath with the others about being disgusting, he always commented on how pretty she looked and asked her if she needed anything.

Dinner was a pleasant affair, filled with buttered rolls and stew, and goblets filled with pumpkin juice. Sirius watched the way his daughter and Charlie would slyly glance up at the other, before turning all their red faced attention to their bowls, while trying to peek up again. It annoyed him just a little. Like any father, he didn't appreciate his daughter attracting any male attention, but he knew he would have to get used to it. He was mixed between being grateful that it was a nice boy that he knew and trusted, but also wanting to hex Charlie, because he knew that he was more of a one night type of guy who forgot the girl's name the next morning.

"I'm going to sleep early tonight," Anica said, getting up from the table. "So I'll be able to get up early enough for tomorrow. Goodnight!"

Standing up, Sirius kissed his daughter's cheek, a habit he made sure he got into. He hadn't been there to kiss his daughter goodnight for sixteen years of her life, so he would start now. She didn't seem to mind it. "Goodnight, love. I'll make sure that Kreacher has a nice breakfast ready for you in the morning."

"Okay."

"Goodnight Nica," Charlie wanted nothing more than to kiss her goodnight as well. But his kiss goodnight wouldn't have been as innocent as Sirius's simple peck on the cheek.

"Goodnight Charlie," she made sure not to look back at him this time. Her knickers were already damp from earlier on the couch when she gained the courage to pull his legs up onto her lap. She would need a hot shower before sleeping tonight.

**A/N: I promised you guys somebody new in this chapter. (: and more of Charlie as well. Hmm riding a broom with Charlie next chapter? And yayy for long chapters again. :3 so the job? Out of the blue right? I'm sorry if its seeming slow, but I promise I just have to past these slow chapters for now, but I promise that next chapter there will be no slowness to it (; -remember now… this is a story based on the estranged daughter of Sirius Black, and Charlie Weasley. :3**


	7. Looking Through The Glass

**Just a bit of a warning: There's 'scene' in here that would be rated M, and erm… no keikis should read it! So be warned!(:**

Looking Through The Glass

_I'm looking at you through the glass,_

_Don't know how much time has passed._

_Oh God! It feels like forever_

_But no one ever tells you that forever feels like home_

_Sitting all alone inside your head._

Charlie was walking down the hallway to go downstairs, and prepare for the Quidditch match that he had promised Anica. Tying his hair back into a slightly short ponytail, he was wearing faded blue corduroys that reached the middle of his calves, something that he never thought he would be caught dead in but found quite freeing. Oblivious to how the tight white undershirt showed off every crease in his eight pack, and would soon make the young seventeen year old whimper at just the sight of it, he continued walking. What is that noise?

_How do you feel? That is the question,_

_But I forget you don't expect an easy answer_

_When something like a soul becomes initialized_

_And folded up like paper dolls and little notes_

_You can't expect a bit of folks._

_So while you're outside looking in_

_Describing what you see_

_Remember what you're looking at is me._

Just as he neared closer towards the door that remained slightly ajar, he could hear it better now than he could hear it from just a couple feet behind him. Stopping in his tracks, he poked his head in and couldn't help but to grin. Bobbing her head while standing in the middle of the room, Anica had her eyes shut tightly while singing, unaware that she now had a single audience member. Charlie noticed that she hadn't gotten dressed yet, and was still wearing very short yellow colored shorts, showing off the under part of a very large apple shaped bottom, and a yellow laced bra, allowing him a peek at strawberry colored nipples, also showing him that her large chest was in fact; very real. It looked for a moment as if she had beauty marks or freckles all over her chest as well. Feeling a tug in his pants, he released a silent groan; it seemed that his second head seemed to notice it as well. The girl who suspected nothing continued to flail her arms around just belting out a muggle song that he's never heard before, but a song he would never be able to forget nor the picture that came with it.

_Cause I'm looking at you through the glass,_

_Don't know how much time has passed_

_All I know is that it feels like forever_

_But no one ever tells you that forever feels like home_

_Sitting all alone inside your head._

_How much is real? So much to question._

_An epidemic of the mannequins, contaminating everything_

_We thought came from the heart,_

_But never did right from the start._

_Just listen to the noises_

_-Null and void instead of voices-_

_Before you tell yourself_

_It's just a different scene_

_Remember it's just different from what you've seen._

Trying to take a step back, wondering how such a devilish looking young girl could have such an angelic voice, Charlie let out another silent groan. Just taking a step caused his member to rub up against his shorts, causing him a mixture of pleasure and straining pain. Taking one last look at the girl who was still oblivious to him, he ran a hand through his hair before turning around, and running back to his room.

Quickly casting a silencing spell around his room, Charlie made sure that his door was locked before pulling down his shorts. Looking down at his hardened cock, he groaned at the sight of the already dripping pre-cum. How the hell did this girl have the power to make him so painfully hard, and drip pre-cum by staring at her for only a minute? As he remembered the sight of her arse cheeks hanging out from the bottom of her very short shorts, he started to tug at himself feeling a pressure that he never felt so quickly before. Shutting his eyes he let out another whimper when he saw the strawberry nipples peeking back at him through the teasing yellow lace. Moving his hand to a quicker pace, his breathing was already ragged and heavy. This was embarrassing, making him glad no one was around to witness such a thing. One final hard tug and a thought of those tiny, plump singing lips replacing his hand had Charlie releasing the thick hot cum onto his hands and shirt.

"Oh Merlin Anica!" he gasped out, collapsing to his knees trying to catch his breath.

"You're a traitor Black!" Fred hissed, folding his arms over his chest.

Rolling her eyes as she rolled her hair up into a quick bun, Anica glanced over at the stairs and grinned, "Hey Charlie. You're up late this morning."

Trying to hide the flush in his cheeks as he remembered what he just did in his room with her in his mind, Charlie turned to his brother. "Who's a traitor?"

"Black," George hissed, pointing at Anica as if she were a disease.

"Working with the enemy," Fred also stared at her with a burning glare as if she would dirty them with just her mere presence.

"You guys were the ones who turned her away," Charlie chuckled, shaking his head at his two brothers. "You should've known by now that if she wanted to do something she would do it with or without you."

"Thank you Charlie," Anica nodded her head at him, crossing her arms over her chest. Charlie noticed that she was now wearing tight pink colored jeans that reached right above her knees and a black baby tee that had a gold star on the front of it. "Besides," she told the twins, "I'm working at a Quidditch shop now. I get discounts on brooms, and such."

Fred and George raised an eyebrow at this statement, "Really now?" they both questioned.

"On friends, and family, of course," she nodded her head, almost daring them with her eyes. "You know the ones that don't hate me."

George was the first one to pick her up in his arms, removing her feet from the floor, "We don't hate you."

"Oh contraire, you beautiful-" Fred swooped her away from George, cradling her against his chest.

"Sweet-" George.

"Talented-" Fred.

"Extremely gorgeous-"

"Person that we love so much-"

Both shoving their faces into hers, they shouted, "Marry us!"

"After you break my heart so hard," she faked placing her hands over heart, and turning her head away from them with pouting lips. She had no idea how much her pouting her lips affected Charlie. "I don't think I'll ever be able to move past that."

Grinning, Fred and George smirked at Charlie who was trying very hard to picture Snape naked instead of the girl he very much wanted to ravage in his arms pouting at him right before he kissed those plump lips. "How about-" said Fred.

"Free tricks-" George.

"And lunch together-" Fred.

"Twice a week," again they finished together.

"Okay," she smiled, jumping out of Fred's arms, seeing as how he was still cradling her.

Coming towards the scene from the library, Sirius and Remus both exchanged a weird look. "What are you so excited about, love?" they both asked her.

"The twins proposed," she grinned.

Rolling his eyes, Charlie crossed his arms over his chest still trying his hardest to imagine Snape naked. "She declined though."

Remus smirked at the quick relief that flooded Sirius's face. Also seeing the relief in her father's face, Anica made her face straight. "At least not until I get over them breaking my heart like that."

"Don't worry Padfoot-" George also made a straight a face.

Imitating his twin, Fred also kept his face straight, "We promise to love her and all that good stuff-"

"Besides, after all these years-" George.

"We're practically family already," they both winked at the pale faced Sirius who looked as if he were about to faint.

"Yeah Dad," Anica joined in on the teasing by linking her arms in with the Weasley twins, not noticing the glare their older brother cast at them. "You already know them, and you already get along so well with them. No awkward introductions."

Remus chuckled, hiding his smile behind a not so subtle cough while Sirius groaned, pinching his noses bridge; nearly fainting at what the twins said next- "Yeah Dad."

"Alright now," Remus shook his head, chuckling, and placing a hand on Anica's lower back, "Why don't we just settle down in the kitchen for breakfast. Everyone should be here soon. And I'm sure that Charlie just wants to play Quidditch already."

"Yeah," Fred wiggled his eyebrows in the direction of his older brother, "I'm sure that he does too."

"Say Gred," George straightened his face, but the mischievous glint shone brightly from his eyes.

"Yes Forge?" Fred's already identical face matched up with his twin's even more than usual.

"Isn't our dear brother going to be sharing a broom with the lovely Anica?"

Faking an overly dramatic gasp that turned Anica's cheeks a burning color, and had Charlie rolling his eyes, Fred placed both his hands over his mouth, "Why yes he is brilliant twin of mine."

"Then," holding out his index finger, and resembling ET when he wanted to go home, George pointed towards the back of the Black Manor, "To the field. We shall play now."

Connecting the palm of both of his hands to the back of the two twins' heads, Sirius glared at them. "Kitchen! Breakfast! Now!"

Charlie and Anica were both left standing there. One scratched the back of his head while the other rocked on her feet. The sun set into the ocean as they stared at each other. It's been nearly three weeks since living with him, and Anica still wasn't good at hiding the way his skin hugging shirts had an effect on her. Charlie became self-conscious; looking down at his pants to make sure he had no tell-tale signs of what he's just done in his bedroom. Of course he changed his shirt, scared that not even his wand would be able to clean off the stain, but he was still nervous. Chewing on her bottom lip, Anica felt awkward. Not because she was alone with Charlie, but because she was_ alone_ with Charlie. It took every ounce of self-control she had in her just to keep herself from jumping him right then.

Hearing the crackling sounds of the fireplace, they both jumped in fright, each being drawn out of their similar thoughts, and turning to see who had just interrupted them. Draco stepped out from the green colored flames first; dressed in long black jeans, and a green colored t-shirt. Blaise followed right behind him. Anica noticed that Blaise was wearing Khaki's, and a maroon colored tank top. They were both holding onto brooms that caused Charlie's mouth to water.

"Is that the new _Firebolt2008_?"

Grinning while nodding his head, Draco was the one who answered, "Perks of having a best mate who owns his own Quidditch supply shop."

"Bloody hell!"

Rolling her eyes, Anica pulled Blaise into a hug, ignoring Draco completely. "Hey Blaise."

"Hullo love," he kissed her cheek then held his hand out to Charlie. "Hullo Weasley."

"Oh Gods no," shaking her head while Charlie shook hands with Blaise, Anica glared at the two of them, "No more last name shits, we're all adults now. The war is over, and school is out. Blaise this is _Charlie_. Charlie this is _Blaise._"

Chuckling, Charlie shrugged his shoulders at a confused looking Blaise, "Well, hullo then _Blaise._"

"Hullo_ Charlie_."

Ignoring the snickers that came from the two males, Anica linked her arm in with Draco's, "You two came just in time for breakfast."

"Is Hermione here yet?"

Anica sighed. She always knew how Draco felt about Hermione. So did Blaise, which was why he snickered from behind them. Turning to glare at him, she saw that Charlie was also trying to hide a smirk. Of course Charlie knew. Everyone knew. Now that it was known Draco was on their side all along, he didn't cover up his love for Hermione with a blinding hatred anymore. Everyone could see how he felt, "Not yet. Only the twins and Remus is here," everyone knew about his love for her except for Hermione of course.

"Look who decided to show up," Fred grinned once they entered the kitchen.

"Everybody this is _Blaise_," Anica emphasized his name hoping that everyone would understand she wanted them to address him as such, and not by just his surname. That was something enemies did, and Blaise was no longer an enemy. In a way, he never really was.

Standing up, Sirius walked over to them. He noticed that Draco and Charlie quickly abandoned the Italian Slytherin; running over to the twins to sit with them, while Anica continued to stand her ground. "Hullo Blaise. I'm Sirius Black. It's nice to finally meet you."

"You too sir," Blaise grinned, shaking the offered hand. "I'm glad that you and Anica found each other. I was starting to plot how to kill the muggles, and take her to the Zabini Manor."

Laughing, Remus took a sip from his orange juice filled goblet. "It's good to know that so many Slytherins were willing to kill the muggles for Anica."

"Yeah," Anica winced. Charlie was the only one who noticed that it looked as if she had been in pain, "That's my boys for you, always catching my back."

Remus was the one who caught the annoyance in Charlie's face when Anica referred to the two Slytherins as '_my boys_.' "You're looking good Blaise."

Taking the seat next to Anica, Blaise nodded his head, "As do you Professor. Congratulations by the way, on your marriage, and your baby."

"Thank you," Remus grinned. "And please, I haven't been a professor in four years. Call me Remus."

Quickly swallowing the spoonful of oatmeal, Draco looked up at Remus. "Are Tonks and Teddy coming today too?"

"No," he shook his head. "Andromeda asked for Teddy, and Tonks still refuses to leave him alone with anyone who isn't herself. Or Anica. Or Harry. So she tagged along with them."

Anica and Hermione stood side by side. Both of them shaking with fear. Hermione always hated heights. Throughout her years at Hogwarts she had been forced to ride in the air because of Harry and his attempts at saving the wizarding world. She rode on Buckbeak the Hippogriff in her third year. She rode a Thestral in her fifth year when they went to the Ministry of Magic, and again in the beginning of seventh year when Kingsley Shacklebolt accompanied her on their mission to pass off as Harry in order to trick the Death Eaters. Oh! And of course the dragon that she rode just about two months ago to escape Gringotts. Flying was the thing she hated most, and especially on a broom. Especially since it was the one thing she wasn't good at. Flying was about control, and the blasted broom refused to let her have any.

Anica hated brooms because of Draco. It was his second year in Hogwarts, and they were both twelve. He wanted to show off that he was allowed his own broom in school because he was the new Seeker for Slytherin, and his father had brought him the fastest broom in the world. Always one for an adventure, and so trusting in Draco, she jumped on the back of his broom. Five minutes and eleven seconds later, Anica was holding onto the ground, puking her life away. Ever since then, she refused to get on anything that would take her off the ground. Even elevators at the mall had her hyperventilating.

"I won't do any loops in the air," Charlie promised. His hand was held up in the air while his legs straddled his broom. "And if you get dizzy or don't feel good, I promise that I'll bring you back down."

Draco was also trying to coax Hermione onto his own broom. "Whatever she said, she's a liar, Hermione. I won't kill you in the air. And I'll go slowly."

Hearing his words, Hermione whimpered while taking a step back. Her eyes nervously glanced at Anica who seemed to be struggling with her own fear. "What's that supposed to mean? Why would I think you'd kill me in the air?"

"I didn't tell her you're a maniac on a broom," Anica hissed at Draco.

Turning a scarlet color, Draco groaned. He just scared Hermione more than she had to be. "Are you scared of heights, Hermione?"

Weakly nodding her head, Hermione took another step back. "I'd rather be facing Voldemort again right now."

Floating in the air just a few feet away from them, Harry heard Hermione's words, and rolled his eyes. "Honestly Hermione. You rode Buckbeak, you rode two Thestrals, and you rode a bloody dragon. Just get on the damned broom!"

"Buckbeak?" Draco raised both his eyebrows. "That bloody beast?"

Turning a glare on Draco, Hermione bared her teeth at him in a snarl, "If you weren't such a bloody prat, he wouldn't have scratched you. And yes… I have ridden that _bloody beast, _and I wouldn't call him that if I were you. He doesn't appreciate being called such horrid names."

"Like he can hear me," Draco scoffed.

Clearing his throat, Harry nodded his head. "Yeah, he actually can."

"What?"

"He's not… erm… well you see, he's not actually dead. We saved him that year."

"We?"

"Hermione and me," Harry nodded his head. "Actually, it was the same time we saved Sirius."

Draco's face darkened as he glared in the direction that Sirius kept his beloved pet Hippogriff, "Witherwings…" he growled. "I knew that bloody Hippogriff had something against me."

"Oi!" Ron shouted from the air, "Are we playing or what?"

Blaise also shouted from between the twins, who were nagging him about discounts at his shop, "Yeah, I thought today was all about teaching Anica more about Quidditch than the books can."

"What do you girls say?" Harry asked.

Sighing, Anica grabbed onto Charlie's hand. "Fine, but I'm warning you Charlie; the last time I rode on a broom, I puked."

"At least give a warning this time," Draco shuddered as he thought back to that day, "I don't think Charlie will be as kind to you as I was with puke on his back."

Scrunching up her face, Hermione fought the urge to vomit. "W-Why would she puke?"

"I may or may not have went a little fast with her," Draco shrugged his shoulders, trying to hide his face. "But I promise I won't go fast with you. You can trust me, Hermione."

Seeing everyone staring at her, Hermione swallowed a large gulp of air, and then sighed. "Oh alright, but I mean it Draco Malfoy, if I want to go down, you better put me down. And I will hex you if you even think of doing one trick. Just one!"

Fighting an internal battle with the crows that were now taking over her insides, Anica grinned with a low sigh when Charlie wrapped his arms around her waist from behind. Sitting in front of him, she scooted until her back was pressed tightly against his chest, allowing him to wrap his arms comfortably around her in order to hold onto the broom stick. Glancing over to her side, she watched Draco do the same with Hermione. She envied them right now. Draco had his arms around Hermione, who also wrapped her arms around his neck from behind herself; forcing his chin onto her shoulder. They were both laughing about something that she couldn't hear, and she envied having that.

"Wrap your arms around my neck so you don't fall," Charlie was grateful that his husky voice remained calm. Once she sat against him, he nearly fell off his broom from the impact. It took every ounce of his Gryffindor courage just to wrap his arms around her.

Biting on her lower lip, Anica held back her giggle as she did what he said. Cinnamon burned her nose as his hair ticked against her. The light stubble of fur on his chin scratched at her cheek as he placed his head in the nook of her shoulder and neck. "Like this?"

"Mhmm…" Charlie had to remind himself that they were surrounded by people. His brothers, sister, and friends were watching them, as well as her father, godfather, godbrother, brothers, and friends. Thankful that his mind was stuck on an instant replay of a naked Snape, Charlie didn't have to worry about her feeling his… ahem… feelings for her. "You ready to go up now?"

Allowing her eyes to shut, Anica held in the feeling to moan as she nodded her head. Once she felt the kick in her stomach though, she couldn't hold back the gasp. Keeping her eyes shut, she relaxed deeper against Charlie. "Oh God."

"Open your eyes Anica," he chuckled.

Slowly doing as she was told, Anica saw that she was surrounded by everyone. No longer envious of Hermione and Draco for holding onto each other, she saw that Draco was calmly whispering something to Hermione to keep her from having a nervous breakdown in the air. Blaise continued to stay in place between the twins, while Ron and Harry stayed near them. Ginny was also talking to Hermione, trying to calm her friend down. Looking down, she saw her dad waving up at her. Biting down on her tongue, she only nodded her head at him; too scared to remove her hand from Charlie, and wave back. Remus was talking about something with Arthur, while Molly nervously watched Hermione.

"You alright, love?" Blaise asked Anica, when he realized Draco was too busy calming Hermione down.

Slowly nodding her head, she pressed her lips together, "Mhmm," she was too nervous to speak, fearing that if her mouth opened, she would lose all contents of her breakfast.

"Draco's taking Hermione back to the ground," Ginny announced loudly to the circle. When everyone turned, they saw Draco slowly moving towards the ground, while continuing to whisper something to Hermione. "Something about a broom being less sturdy than a creature. She refuses to stay in the air any longer."

"This was longer than I expected her to last anyway," Harry sighed.

Shaking his head, Ron laughed, "I love Hermione's fear of heights. I may not be smarter than her, but I always beat her in the air."

"How about you Anica?" Ginny asked the still nervous looking girl, and choosing to ignore her brother's idiocy. Holding back the grin that wanted to appear when she saw how comfortable the girl looked with her favorite brother, she flew closer to them, "Do you wanna go back down too?"

Looking back at the ground, where Molly was now holding onto a trembling Hermione while Draco flew back towards them, Anica shook her head. "N-No. I'm fine."

"You sure?" Charlie asked her. "Cause I can take you down if you want to go. You can still learn all about Quidditch from just watching it."

Nodding her head, she pressed her lips together in a tightened smile, "I'm sure."

Reaching the circle, Draco shook his head. He and Blaise both just nodded their heads together. Whenever Anica flashed a tight looking smile; she was forcing it on her face. A tightened smile meant that something was making her nervous or scared, but she wanted to play a brave façade, and just get through it. "You gonna go through with this Ani?"

Nodding her head, she made sure to flash a real smile at him. She knew that he could read her like an open book; something she always tried to trick, but never could. "Yep. Let's just get this over with."

"Alright," he chuckled. He knew better then to argue with her about anything. Once she set her mind on something, she would do it. And if you tried to talk her out of it, it would just push her towards it even more. He learned that within just a month of knowing her. It took Blaise about a year before he realized it. "So who's on whose team?"

"I say Draco and Blaise should be on separate teams," Ron announced, already accepting the fact that they had to play best mates with a Zabini. "Being the only two Slytherins, I think it's fair."

"As well as Harry and Ginny," Fred announced.

Nodding his head, George agreed with his twin, "I've been on the same team with them before. It isn't fair to anyone who has to play against them.

"I'm on Charlie's team," Anica chuckled, earning a giggle from Ginny, and a smirk from all the males. "Just in case… you know… well, you guys are separating everyone else."

Rolling his eyes at Anica's attempt at a joke, Draco looked around the circle. "Harry and I should be on different teams as well."

"So we got two Seekers then," Ginny nodded her head. "Alright. So, Blaise is with Harry, and I'm with Draco. Fred and George with us, while Charlie and Ron team up with Harry."

"Sounds good!"

"Alright!"

"Weasley is our king!"

"Blaise and I will be Chasers," Charlie announced, "And Ron takes Beater."

"Fred and George takes Beater while I take Chaser," Ginny also announced.

Once the teams were arranged, Charlie flew higher up into the air across from Blaise. Anica was excited now. All fear left her mind as she realized that this was happening. They were about to play Quidditch. Draco stuck out his tongue at her, causing her to stick her tongue back. She was pleased with how they arranged the teams, The Gryffindor Seeker and the Slytherin Seeker each on a separate team; battling like how they did in school. The Beaters remained as Beaters while the Chasers remained Chasers. Blaise was the only one, besides Anica, who never played at Hogwarts, but he has played before with his friends during the holidays. There were two Beaters to one Chaser, and one Beater to two Chasers. It was evened out nicely, and friends were against friends while siblings were plotted against siblings. Boyfriend stood across from girlfriend, and somewhere below them a whistle blew.

**A/N: I don't really like this chapter. I never really understood Quidditch myself, and trying to write about it, made me a little sick. So I added in Charlie's little scene to make it up to you guys, and to give you a sneak peak of what's coming soon. (: I promise that next chapter is much much MUCH better than this one is, with a flashback of the broom ride. And a secret is revealed during a game of truth and dare 0_o what could it be? Oh! And the song is also; **_**Looking Through The Glass**_** by **_**Stone Sour.**_** I love them :3**


	8. Covered In Secrets

**A/N: Ahh I'm sorry! If you've been keeping up with this story since day one, you would know that I post a new chapter every Monday or Tuesday, but I missed last week's chapter, and I'm only posting this one now- which I'm using my mom's laptop for btw- it's just that a lots been going on, and I haven't been home since Halloween. Or well I have, but only for really short minutes. I've been either at the hospital, my cousins, or my friend's house. I got home a couple of days ago, but then I had no internet, and then I got a call that one of my friends was killed. This is my 2cd friend to be killed in only 2 months' time. ): **

**Oh, and also to: **_**Prophetical**_**, I'm sorry it took so long to reply to this, I don't know why I haven't answered it yet. - when I see Charlie Weasley, I like to picture the guy who played Bill Weasley, just minus the scars, and a bit more muscular- but not too much because then that's gross- I don't know why, but Bill's really hot! I hope that answered your question (:**

Covered In Secrets

"You cheated!"

Laughing as Draco pouted about losing the Quidditch match, Anica patted him on his shoulder, "Don't be such a whiner, Draco. From what I hear, you should be used to losing by now, eh."

"Bint!" folding his arms over his chest, Draco didn't care that he was now sulking. So what if he was sulking? He had every right to sulk. The other team cheated. And even if they wouldn't admit it, he knew it was true.

Also laughing, Ginny pulled Anica away from Draco before he could do something stupid, "So did you learn anything, Anica?"

"Yes," she smiled, "Yes, I did. I learned that Harry really is a better Seeker than Draco," laughing hard at the growl that Draco was now sending her way, she allowed herself a couple of seconds to calm down. "And I also learned that as long as the person steering the broom isn't Draco, or Blaise, I won't be killed."

Rolling his eyes, Fred, who didn't take losing as easily as his sister has, groaned, "Yes, but did you learn anything about Quidditch?"

"Yes I did," smiling genuinely now, Anica looked around at everyone. "Thanks for helping me out guys. This was fun, and you were right Charlie" though she spoke to him, her eyes were still glued on everyone, but him. "Playing the game does teach more than just reading about it."

"Glad I could help you out," he grinned; images of his arms wrapped around her were still in his mind. The scent of mountain apples haunted his nose, canceling out the sweat that he knew took over his body.

"Well," Ron stretched, "I'm going to take a shower. See you all later."

"Let's all meet back here after we shower," Ginny suddenly suggested; a frightening twinkle shone brightly from her eyes, causing every person in the room to take a sudden step back.

Hermione, staying away from the group, nodded her head, "Kreacher made lunch for everyone. And Sirius left with Remus for lunch at Andromeda's place. They were waiting for you guys, but the game was taking too long."

"Where's Mum and Dad?" asked Fred.

"They went home."

"Perfect," Ginny's eyes still held the twinkle; reminding Harry of Dumbledore, every time he would get a thinking look on his face, right before he sent Harry out to do something that usually almost got him killed. "After lunch we'll play a game of truth or dare."

_Ducking away from a bludger, Charlie lifted the handle of the broom in a swift motion, causing Anica to accidentally leak out a moan of ecstasy. She could tell that Charlie heard it by the way his breathing got shorter. Another second later he lifted his hand to protect her face from another bludger that came after them, allowing his arm to graze her breast before resting against it. Anica managed to stifle back a moan this time, but there was no way in denying the feeling of the now raised erection pressing against her back. She pretended that she didn't notice it by not making any sudden movements as to get away from it. If Charlie knew that she could feel it, he didn't play on it, but it was getting harder for her to concentrate on the game that they were playing. The hard member of Charlie Weasley continued to stay pressed against her for a good four minutes, before it finally subsided. She didn't know what he did to make it disappear, but she was grateful that he did it. If they had stayed in that position for another couple of seconds, she would have given everybody who was out there, a very entertaining show; a show that people usually have to pay to see._

Freshly dressed in green colored shorts and a plain white colored tank top, Anica had her damp hair tied back into a French braid. She saw that everyone else was freshly showered with damp hair as well. Charlie was changed into grey sweats, and another tight white tank top; making her wet again at just his sight. Chewing on her lower lip once more, she saw the way Draco was admiring the ankle length black leggings that Hermione was wearing beneath a blue and white striped colored strapless dress. Wearing a short blue jeans jumper over a red colored shirt, Ginny entered the room with an empty bottle in one hand. Her other hand held a bottle of what looked like water. Anica began to wonder if it was perhaps vodka.

"Is that _Veritaserum_?" asked Ron, making Anica feel dense for thinking it could be alcohol.

Nodding her head, Ginny flashed a wicked grin. "It's for anyone who chooses truth. Just take a tiny sip so it'll only last until you answer that one question. I figured some people may try to lie."

"What kind of questions are you planning on asking?" Draco cocked an eyebrow.

Flashing a smirk that would have made any Malfoy proud, Ginny wiggled both her eyebrows in response, "You'll just have to choose, truth, and find out."

"I don't think I want to play this game with you," George's face paled as he thought of all the things his sister would do to them.

Nodding his head, Blaise scratched his chin, "I agree with twin one. You're a scary bird, Ginny."

"Thank you Blaise," she grinned as if it were a compliment. "Now let's begin."

Everyone stared at each other for a while, except for Anica and Charlie. Charlie noticed that Anica hadn't looked his way yet, and he wondered if she could feel his reaction to her on the broom. He hadn't meant to get an erection, but hearing the erotic moan escape her lips when he yanked the broom up, and the way his hand grazed her breast before his elbow leaned against it, he couldn't think of Snape in time. It took a total of four minutes to think of anything other than what he just felt. He prayed that she didn't notice anything, but the way that she avoided him proved differently. Groaning, he sat on the floor between Ron and Blaise. He noticed that Anica was sitting between the twins right across from him. They were both looking strangely at Anica, then back across at him. He wondered if they knew what happened. Then again – they were the twins. Of course they knew what happened on the broom. It made him groan again.

"Does anybody want to eat lunch before we play?" Ginny asked. Aside from Ron's groaning, everyone else shook their heads. Grunting out in a pleased way, Ginny took the position as leader of the game, "The rules are simple," she announced, placing the truth potion in the center of them all. "If you choose truth, you'll take a sip of the _Veritaserum_, and answer honestly. Should you choose dare, you must do whatever the person tells you to."

Clearing his throat, Blaise chose to ignore all the turned heads now staring at him. "And if we don't?"

"Then I'll hex you."

Hiding his chuckle behind a clenched fist at how quickly his friend turned an odd purple looking color, Draco rolled his eyes. "Then you have to answer three truths. Sound fair enough to everybody?"

"Fine," Ginny's voice was soft, whining almost, as her bottom lip pouted out. "But I really wanted to hex somebody."

"We know, Gin," Harry chuckled before pecking his girlfriend on the cheek. "So who's going to go first?"

Seeming to perk up at the idea of the game starting in this instant, Ginny began to squirm in her seat. "I will," placing her finger on her chin, her eyes scanned the now nervous circle. The golden trio had played this game with Ginny before, during their sixth year – her fifth – and they knew she liked to get a little personal with her questions, and somewhat careless with her tasks. Her other three brothers just knew not to question her, while the former Slytherins knew how frightening she could be. Anica just didn't like the way her eyes landed on her before grinning at Charlie. This wouldn't be good, "Fred."

Everyone was thrown off. They were all so sure that she would choose either Charlie or Anica, by the way her eyes continued to smirk at them. "Erm…" the usually carefree Fred Weasley, wasn't feeling so good anymore. He knew enough of his sister to know that she could be as devious as him and his twin. "T-Truth," came the anticipated stammer.

"Fairy," Ginny's mutter was low enough so only Harry could hear her. Elbowing him in the ribs before he could start to laugh, she turned back to her brother. "Take your sip," once Fred had taken a tiny sip of the truth potion, a grin returned to her lips, "Is it true that you shagged Cho Chang a week after she went with Cedric Diggory to the Yule Ball?"

Feeling all eyes in the room on him, Fred turned a bright red shade. "Yes," he admitted shamefully, avoiding looking at Harry. Everyone knew Harry had the hots for Cho that year. "I was walking down the corridor when I overheard her getting into another one of her arguments with Cedric. He shouted something at her, and she ran off. I followed after to make sure she was alright, and we started to snog. The next thing I knew, we were both shagging in one of the broom closets."

Pulling on the hem of his shirt, Harry thought back to his fifth year. It was obvious that Cho had been beat up about her boyfriend's death, but… "I knew there was something else to it," when he realized he had spoken aloud, instead of to himself, Harry blushed. "Erm," scratching the back of his head, he looked over at his girlfriend, "When Cedric died, I knew she was hiding something. It was like she felt guilty about something, and his death worsened it for her."

"Yeah, well now you know why," several seconds of silence passed before Fred cleared his throat, "Right, well moving on. Blaise!"

Knowing this couldn't be good, Blaise groaned. He tried to think of what would be the easiest way out, but he knew that with one of the Weasley twins, there was no way out. Both options were like a death trap just waiting to happen. "Truth."

Allowing Blaise a couple of moments to drink the potion, Fred rubbed his hands together. "Alright now, we've been wondering this for years. I've got to know if the rumors are true or not."

Frightened by the gasp from Hermione and Ginny, as well as the groans from all the males in the room, besides his best mate of course, Blaise stared up at Fred, "What rumors?"

"On why you've never had a girlfriend at Hogwarts," Fred saw how quickly Blaise was beginning to squirm in place now, "So is it true Blaise Zabini? Is one of the Princes of Slytherin into the same sex?"

He tried to fight it. He shook his head, but the potion was forcing the truth from his lips, "Yes," shutting his eyes, he waited for it. Where was the shouting? Where was the hexing? Where were the threats from all the males in the room? Slowly opening one eye, he saw them all just staring at him. Every face was blank. He opened his second eye. "Wait – what do you mean are the rumors true? You guys talked about this?"

"Don't look at me, mate," Draco defended himself with his hands in the air. "This is the first time I've heard it being spoken of."

"Such a shame," Hermione sighed, with a shake of her head. "The hot ones always are."

Glaring at Blaise as if he had just ended the world, Draco quickly turned to Hermione, "I'm not. I like birds very much. In fact, blokes disgust me. Disgusting species if you ask me."

Rolling his eyes at the giggle that Hermione was now emanating, Fred shrugged his shoulders, "Everyone in Gryffindor spoke about it. The way Draco would always have some bird hanging off his arm-"

"Cow," Hermione coughed.

Ginny coughed as well, "Parkinson."

"-Even Crabbe and Goyle had birds with them."

"And you mate," Harry shook his head, trying his hardest not to laugh at the coughing fit his girlfriend, and best friend seemed to be enduring, "You were always alone. We kind of just knew it."

"And you?" Blaise asked Draco, "Did you suspect anything?"

Glancing over at Anica, they both nodded their heads at the same time. When Blaise's eyes grew wide, Draco rolled his. "Oh come off it Blaise. It was obvious."

Witnessing the confusion take over Blaise's face as his mind tried to recur a time when he had been obvious about his preference in males, Anica sighed. "Remember that time I took you and Draco to that community pool, and my strings broke off? And I flashed everyone?" the twins were grinning at the blank expression their older brother had at this spoken memory, while Blaise nodded his head. "When I was trying to cover myself with my hands Draco was trying to grab a towel to wrap me up in, and you… well you…"

Seeing that Anica was struggling with the correct words to say, Draco sighed again, "I could see your reflection in the puddle of water by our feet when I was trying to hide Anica's body. You were checking out my bum crack instead of her chest. We've known ever since then, mate."

"But, but we were only thirteen then," had it really been that long? Had he really been gay since then? Now that he thought back to that day, it was true. He was rushing over to help cover his friend's bare chest up, when he noticed that the red colored swim trunks were starting to slowly fall off Draco's hips. He stopped running towards them, standing there, admiring the crease of his best mate's bum. "Thanks," the blush had already permanently stained his face. "For not acting weird around me all these years."

"Why would I act weird around you?" Draco cocked an eyebrow. "You're my best mate Blaise. So you like blokes? More birds for me now, eh?"

Laughter enveloped the room. A relief took over Blaise. So he was gay? Apparently his best mate and the girl he took like a sister already knew so. And they continued to treat him as they did before. Draco was never weird around him, something he started to laugh at even more. Draco knew the truth from when they were only thirteen years old, and he still continued to change in front of him; walking nude in front of him at various moments in their years, and not once had Draco ever seemed uncomfortable about it. A weight had been lifted from Blaise's shoulder. He could breathe now. His greatest fear was always how Draco would take the news. He kept picturing Draco cursing him, feeling betrayed for being lied to, feeling violated, and used. But he accepted him. It wasn't as if Blaise ran around parading that he was gay. He hadn't swished his hips when he would walk, he didn't change his fashion sense, and he didn't wear makeup, or talk with a squeak in his voice. He didn't go around clapping his hands at everything that excited him, nor did he publicly admire men – except for that one time at the pool, apparently – Blaise was smart about keeping his secret, but now that it was out… he found himself more relaxed.

Taking a quick peek around the circle to see if any of the former Gryffindors were now looking at him funny, Blaise saw that no one seemed to mind. "My turn," he grinned, still waiting for one of them to look at him as if he were diseased. "Harry."

"Dare," Harry gave Blaise his best _bring it_ look, earning him a laugh from everyone in the circle. It seemed that everyone was in a lighter mood since Blaise's forced confession.

Damn! Blaise had been hoping he would choose truth, so he could question what he really thought about his preference or if he was just pretending to ignore it for now, so he could gossip about it later. "Hmm," scanning the room they were sitting in, lime colored eyes searched for something he could dare the golden boy to do. "Oh, I've got it," spotting the oddly bra shaped lamp across from where they were, he grinned. "I dare you to wear Ginny's bra for the remainder of the game."

"Dude!"

"Sick!"

"I didn't choose dare," Ginny whined, but her fingers were already reaching under her jumper and shirt.

Shaking his head, Harry pinched the bridge of his nose, "You sick, twisted man."

Laughing, Blaise shrugged his shoulders, "It was the only thing I could think of. Sorry, mate."

Choosing to leave the long sleeved maroon and black colored long sleeve on, Harry slipped the pink laced bra on himself over his shirt. "Anica," he announced, attempting to hook the bra in place. Now if it were the simple task of unhooking it, Harry would have had no problem, but whereas he had to close it, he felt ready to just blast the damn thing with his wand already. How the hell could Ginny do this every morning?

"Truth."

"Gin," he said, turning his back to his girlfriend, "Can you help me with this bloody thing," ignoring the smirks from Ron and Draco, he also chose to ignore the snicker from Ginny and Hermione. "Thanks, love," he smiled, kissing her cheek once more. Then turning his full attention to the girl who was waiting for her question, he saw her return the vial to the center of the circle. "Perfect," he grinned. "The other night, I overheard you and Draco laughing about a time that you used the _Polyjuice potion_. How old were you when you used it? Who did you turn into, and why did you use it?"

"Oh god," everyone saw how pink the girl turned as she tried to bury her face in her hands. Feeling the prodding in her ribs from the twins, along with the burning in her throat from the truth potion, she spoke into her hands, "Draco and Blaise came to visit me over Easter Break when we were fifteen. We finished off all of their firewhiskey, and wanted more alcohol to drink. I had this neighbor who lived in the flat next to mine. She was a streetwalker-"

Seeing the confusion in every one of the Purebloods' faces, Draco smirked, "A prostitute."

"Oh."

"Ah."

"Makes sense."

"Please continue."

"What did you make her do, Draco?"

"This can't be good."

"Wicked!"

"And my foster mum was having this party downstairs. There's a liquor store at the corner from my street, but none of us were old enough to buy alcohol, so Blaise came up with this plan to make me look like her. Draco went back to his manor, and returned fifteen minutes later with the _Polyjuice Potion_. His godfather would always keep a large amount of potions at the manor for them that's why. Pretending to have to use the loo, Blaise went downstairs. Avoiding my foster mum, he made his way through the party, walking towards the loo, looking for the first person he could find. Annabelle, the streetwalker, was standing near the loo door. Pretending to take a spider out of her hair, he pulled out a strand of her hair. They both made me drink the potion once he returned, and helped me out of the window. Blaise stayed back incase my foster mum came looking for me, but Draco walked down to the store with me."

"What happened?" asked Charlie, trying to imagine someone as pure as his angel doing something so wicked. He loved the thought. The girl knew how to have fun, even if it was illegal in both the wizarding world and the muggle world.

Draco and Blaise started to laugh, while Anica removed her hands from her face. They could all see she was resisting the urge to laugh as well. "It turned out that the bloke who owned the liquor store is her number one client. He kept talking about the night before, and asking if we could meet again once he closes the shop. It was so disgusting. I'm trying my hardest not to gag, while Draco's laughing at me, and he's running his foot up my leg. It was horrible."

Ron was the first to laugh. Then it was Ginny, the twins, Harry, Hermione, and then Charlie. "Oh that's brilliant," Ron said through his tears. "Better than our first time at least."

"Oh I hated that," Draco held back the whimper that was trying to force its way out of his throat once Hermione bit on her bottom lip. "I turned into a cat."

Charlie cocked an eyebrow, while folding his arms over his chest, "And when was this?"

"Second year," as soon as the reply came from all three of them, they all flew their hands to their mouth. It was Hermione who glared at Charlie, trying her best to ignore the questioning look from Draco. "It isn't your turn Charlie. So don't ask us questions, because we don't have to answer it."

"You know I'm going to ask you guys once it's my turn, right," he huffed.

"Moving on," Anica said, once she saw Hermione wiggling her tongue out at Charlie in a childish manner. It was odd to see Hermione acting like a child. "Ron."

"Truth."

"Hmm," looking around the circle, she sighed. There weren't many options for any of the Weasley children. They overtook the group, forcing incest upon them if anyone were to choose to make one of them do what this game normally consists of. "Well seeing as how this group's limited, I'll make the question broader," she announced once he had taken his sip. "If you could date anyone who would it be?"

They were all stunned by the way Ron's face lit up. His hair looked pale in consideration to his face. Holding his hands over his mouth, he shook his head, trying to hold in whatever name he was about answer with. His body started to actually shake while some type of invisible magical force tried to remove his hands from his mouth. "Blaise," he blurted out, causing those nearest to him, to jump in fright. Groaning, he avoided looking at the male in question. Harry's eyes hit the ceiling, while Hermione tilted her head to the side. The twins seemed sort of… proud? While everyone else in the room just stared at Blaise.

"What?" Blaise's face was empty. There were no emotions. No excitement, no fear, no anger. Nothing. His voice was just as dry.

Continuing to groan, Ron rubbed his face with both his hands. He hated this game. Stupid Ginny for suggesting they play it, stupid Anica for asking the stupid question, and stupid Sirius for having such a stupid daughter. "Ever since sixth year," he nodded his head, still refusing to look at Blaise. "When I was dating Lavender. Towards the point when she would annoy me to no ends, I would always look up and see you there. Whether you were walking past, sitting a couple feet away, or eating in the Great Hall. You were always just there, and I started to notice how I looked more forward to seeing you, than to being with her. I wanted to strangle her many times, but before I could wrap my hands around her scrawny little neck, I would see you."

"Wow," a grin appeared on Ginny's face. "Now I have two gay brothers. And you're in luck Ron. Blaise just so happens to be gay too."

Charlie was fiddling with his thumbs when his head snapped towards his sister, "What? Two gay brothers?"

"Oh come on guys," when she saw that everyone was still confused, she rolled her entire head now. "Like I'm the only one who thinks Percy's dating Oliver."

"Wood?" Draco cocked an eyebrow. Shaking his head, he began to rub it. This was too much for only half an hour. His best mate comes out of the closet. Then the Weasel, and now he finds out the Weasel's brother, and the former Gryffindor Quidditch Captain have also been hiding somewhere in a closet as well.

Glancing over at Blaise, Anica noticed the soft smile sitting on his lips. Poking her head around to look over at Ron, she chuckled when she saw he was still trying to bury himself into the floor. She felt proud of her question; it may have actually helped them out after all. "It's your turn now Ron," the two boys would need to talk, but not right now. Not when everyone was around them.

"Charlie."

"Dare."

A wicked smile spread across Ron's face. Charlie leaned back, suddenly wishing he had chosen truth, but then he immediately shook that thought out. He had no doubt that his siblings knew of his feelings for the newest Black, and right now Ron was pissed with her for bringing out his truth. A truth that even Harry didn't seem to know, until just now. "I dare you to snog Anica for three whole minutes."

"Oh Ron," Hermione frowned.

Slapping her ignorant brother's head, Ginny scowled at him. "If you had the bollocks to look over at Blaise, you would have seen that he liked your answer."

"We happen to like Ron's dare," grinned a wicked looking Fred.

An equally wickedly grinning George nodded his head in agreement, "We were thinking of the same dare in fact."

"Prat," Draco muttered under his breath, while Blaise shook his head at a now guilty looking Ron.

Wishing, in that moment, that he could use wandless magic, Charlie tried to hex his brother, "Sorry Anica."

Charlie shrugged his shoulders at her. There was hesitation in his eyes as he crawled his way over towards her. Anica swallowed spit, wishing the world would stop spinning long enough for her to hold onto something. "I-it's okay," looking away from his nervous eyes; she felt the sweat in the palms of her hands. Her eyes searched for a familiar face, and then she found it: hurricane eyes; watching her, promising her that everything would be alright.

Draco nodded his head at her; he could see the fear running through her face. Watching the way Fred grabbed onto her hand, and gently squeezed it, he saw the confusion in both of the twins' faces. It seemed like they were the only ones to notice how frightened Anica really was. "It's okay," Draco promised her. "We're all right here," he assured her.

Charlie saw Fred glance at George nervously before turning his head to look at Draco. He didn't pay attention to them though. He was focused on the girl in front of him. "You ready?" he asked.

Nodding her head, Anica released a squeak. "Yes."

Tilting his head slightly to the left, Charlie leaned in closer to her. His lips were dry, and he felt guilty for pressing them against her softened lips. His eyes shut once he could taste the cherry flavored lip-gloss she wore. He didn't even know she wore lip-gloss; they were such a clear color. Feeling her tense beneath him, he prodded at her lips with the tip of his tongue. The dare was for them to snog. Snogging meant tongue action had to be in play. Feeling her hesitate and tighten her lips together, he poked harder. After a couple seconds of licking off all the lip-gloss from her lips, he was finally granted the access he had been craving from the first moment he met her.

His tongue was wet, causing Anica to pull her hand away from Fred's, so she could hold onto Charlie's hair. She was scared his tongue would slip away from her. She could feel the vibrations of a throaty groan against her mouth, as she dug deeper into the kiss. He tasted like ham. Ham mixed in with a hint of cinnamon. The thought of his taste made her mouth water, which seemed to make him groan in response once more. Shutting her eyes, she finally gave in to the kiss. His tongue wrapped around hers, blanketing it from whatever little air seeped its way into their mouths. Her fingers brushed against his scalp, and she felt his body shift as he pulled off of his hands and placed them onto her shoulders. They were no longer surrounded by people, they were alone now. Her worries were gone. Charlie wouldn't hurt her. He was safe, he would protect her. She was alright now.

There was a clearing of a throat in a far distance, but they continued to kiss. Each one of them, swallowed into a passion that they both longed for. There was another sound, one that seemed a little closer, but he continued to devour her mouth some more. "Oi!" came the rude interruption. "It's been five minutes already you two."

"Draco, just let them-"

"No!" recognizing the voice, Anica pulled away. Her lips were swollen, and her breath was heavy. Draco saw the lust in Charlie's eyes as he quickly returned to his spot. His hair was messier than usual now. "The dare was only for three minutes."

"Sorry," Anica tugged on her shirt. The room was hot now. "I got caught up in it."

"Yeah," running his fingers through his hair, Charlie reminded himself to make sure Kreacher stocked up on cherries for the fridge. "Sorry," the taste of cake batter still stayed in his mouth, mixed with her cherry lip-gloss. He never thought it would be possible to fall in love with such a combination. "Umm, Hermione."

"Oh let's just get this one over with," she rolled her eyes. "Truth."

He grinned. He knew she was expecting him to ask about the _Polyjuice _incident in her second year, but instead he allowed her to drink the truth potion, before clearing his throat. "Have you ever wanked before? If you have, when was the last time, and who was on your mind?"

"I hate you Charlie Weasley," flying her shoe at him while he winked at her growling tone, she turned as bright as Ginny's hair. "LastnightthinkingofDraco."

Everyone turned to Draco, but he was still staring at her. "Wait! I couldn't hear you, no mumbling Hermione."

"Lastnightthinkingofyou," she muttered under her breath.

Chuckling, Charlie leaned back on the palms of his hands. "Speak a little clearer, love. I don't think he could understand you."

"LAST NIGHT BEFORE I WENT TO SLEEP, I THOUGHT OF DRACO!" flying her hands to her now numbing lips as she realized she shouted it, Hermione watched Draco, waiting for a reaction.

Licking his lips, Draco grinned. This was a grin that he normally only allowed Anica to see. He was his most vulnerable with this grin. A grin filled with so much love. "I thought of you last night too, love," he admitted, knowing that she felt shame, whereas he only felt pride. "And again this morning."

"Does this mean you two are finally waking up to each other's feelings?" asked a bored Ginny. When Hermione's blush deepened, she smiled, nudging her with her foot. "Well can you two discuss it after the game is over? Like Blaise and Ron?"

Clearing her throat, Hermione shyly looked away from a now winking Draco. "Draco."

"Dare me, love!"

Pouting, Hermione tried to think of the perfect dare. This was the part she hated most about playing this game. Her mind was too fragile to think up any – wait! Hold it; she suddenly got a wicked idea. Hearing the proud snickers coming from the twins, who seemed to read her mind, she grinned. "I dare you to drop your pants. Let us see if the rumors of the Slytherin sex god are true."

"If you wanted to see my dick," Draco chuckled, standing up to his feet. Glancing over at Anica, he saw that she was now playing with her toes. He chuckled then glared at Charlie who was still continuing to watch Anica, "All you had to do was ask. You didn't need a dare to see me nude, Hermione."

Hermione gasped at her sight. Yep! Yep, the rumors are definitely true. Harry's hand immediately flew to cover the ocean eyes of an open mouthed Ginny, while the twins stopped snickering. Blaise rolled his eyes while Ron couldn't remove his. Even Harry was transfixed on the sight in front of him. Hearing the sudden silence take over the room, Charlie finally looked up, and dropped his own jaw as well. "Oh my!" the words escaped Hermione's mouth before she could control it.

"Satisfied?" Draco asked everyone, continuing to stand there with his pants and boxers around his ankles. He held no shame when it came to his equipment. He was truly blessed. Two inches thick and eight inches long, he often thought himself a freak. But as he grew older, and started taking in sexual partners, he learned that most girls actually look for guys like him. When everyone nodded their heads, he chuckled. "Ginny," he said, pulling his clothing back up, and taking his seat back. He smirked when he saw that Hermione's eyes were still focused on his lap. Wondering how she imagined him as she wanked to him, he saw that Charlie had taken to staring at Anica once more.

"Truth."

It took her only a couple of seconds to be seated again, after taking her small sip of the potion. "Are you still a virgin?" he heard the choking noises from all the Weasley males in the room, and the groan from Harry. At least it got Charlie to look away from Anica for a while. "And if not, who did you lose it to? When and where?"

"Ugh," after giving each one of her brothers an apologetic look, she began to twirl her hair. "The night of the attack in the Astronomy tower," she gave Draco an apologetic look. Everyone in the room suddenly did. Anica's gaze wasn't apologetic though, hers was filled with worry. She knew about that night in the Astronomy tower, and she knew how much it tortured Draco. "After everything happened, I snuck into the boys' dorm room just to be with Harry. I knew he needed someone with him, and I needed to be with him as well. We were cuddling for a while, but then it became something more."

"My sister!" Ron pinched the bridge of his nose, "Blimey, Harry. My sister!"

"We were dating," all he could do was shrug his shoulders. All of Ginny's brothers were glaring at him by this time. There was nothing he could say to make this better for any of them. He wasn't sorry that it happened, nor did he regret it. It was the best night of his life. Even better than that time he killed Voldemort.

"And while I was sleeping. I was in that room," a greenish color came over Ron suddenly.

"Anica," quickly shouting out the first name that popped into her mind, Ginny was glad at how equally quick the girl was to respond to her. The quicker they continued the game, the less she had to discuss her first time with her brothers. This might also save Harry's life. "Who was your best orgasm?"

The tears came; tears that only one other person in the room truly understood. Avoiding everyone's eyes, Anica tried to wipe the tears away, but they just kept falling like rain; rain that even an umbrella couldn't keep away. "Draco."

**The questions got uncomfortable because that's how every game of truth or dare is, or at least the ones I always play! And don't worry… you'll understand soon enough. Not in the next chapter, but soon enough…**


	9. When A Dragon Breathes Fire

**Warning: Strong content! Most of you may not like what you read. Be warned! Minor violence and rape!**

When A Dragon Breathes Fire

"Let him go."

_"Anica," quickly shouting out the first name that popped into her mind, Ginny was glad at how equally quick the girl was to respond to her. The quicker they continued the game, the less she had to discuss her first time with her brothers. This might also save Harry's life. "Who was your best orgasm?"_

_ The tears came; tears that only one other person in the room truly understood. Avoiding everyone's eyes, Anica tried to wipe the tears away, but they just kept falling like rain; rain that even an umbrella couldn't keep away. "Draco." _

_ Once his name had escaped her lips, Anica jumped to her feet, running to her room. Draco looked at Hermione, who seemed more confused than hurt about this new information. The twins, who were trying to piece together the mystery, both saw the darkened stare that their older brother now had. Ginny shook her head, while Harry removed the bra he had been wearing the entire time. Blaise looked as shocked as Ron did. The confusion in his own face proved that this was news to even him. He knew that Draco and Anica had kept secrets from him, but he didn't know about this one. And by the tears the girl couldn't control, he could tell this was one that she had never wanted to be leaked. Seeing only the color red, Charlie didn't realize he was clenching his fist. His bitten fingernails were digging deeply into the palm of his hand, but he was too numbed. He couldn't feel the pain it was causing him. He could only feel the anger taking over his body._

_ "I'll erm…" standing up, Harry looked towards the stairs. He had been so used to taking the leadership role because of his past years at Hogwarts, that he instantly jumped to take care of this situation, "I'll just go talk to her, see how she's doing."_

_ "No," continuing to stay seated, Charlie shook his head. _

_ Once Hermione nodded her head at him, Draco sighed. "I'll talk to her. There's a reason behind it Char-"_

_ "I'll talk to her," contemplating how quick this little person could be gone with just one swish of his wand, Charlie was still sitting._

_ "You don't understand how much she shouldn't be alone ri-"_

_ "I said I'll talk to her," finally getting up, Charlie refused to look in Draco's direction, fearful that the blonde would be able to see his true intentions._

_ Sitting on the floor in her room, Anica still couldn't seem to control her tears. Such traitorous tears. She didn't regret that night with Draco, she even loved it. But she knew that no one would understand. The look in Charlie's eyes was still fresh in her mind. Betrayal! He felt betrayed. She didn't understand though. Why would he feel betrayed? It wasn't as if he felt anything for her. Right? Sure, the kiss they just shared felt right. It felt like he was the only person in the world who wouldn't hurt her. In that one moment in time, she finally found a place that she truly belongs. She belonged in his arms – the kiss told her so. Her mind started to race, causing her heart to have a chain reaction to it, also racing. So many thoughts were beginning to hurt her, making her hold her face in her hands. The tears fell through her fingers. Her thoughts were confusing her. One minute she was thinking that Charlie would never think of her in such a way, then the next she's thinking they were made for each other. She's learned from experience that Draco is the only person who would never hurt her, but in that one moment… she believed that Charlie was her protector. She cried harder as the betrayal in his ocean blue eyes returned to her vision once more._

_ "Anica!" jumping in her spot on the floor, Anica grew frightened at the harsh tone in his voice. "Muffliatio!" the hiss in his voice, as he silenced the room, scared the crying girl. Charlie didn't seem to notice._

_ "C-Charlie," the heaviness from the tears in her throat, made it difficult for her to speak. "I-I can ex-"_

_ "You must think you're clever, don't you?" he asked, drawing in closer to her, tapping his wand against the palm of his hand. He still didn't notice Anica creeping away from him. "Hmm? Convincing all of us that Malfoy is nothing more than a brother to you, that the relationship you share is strictly platonic, that you're nothing more than best friends. But then what? You wait until we're all sleeping, so you and your little Death Eater can start shagging?"_

_ "What?" his words were hurting, and they confused her even more. "No! Charlie, it isn't like that. Just let me tell you-"_

_ "What would Sirius say if he knew how much of a slag his daughter really was?" he had her trapped now. She couldn't crawl anywhere else. Her back was against the bed, with Charlie's knees pressed against her face. Reaching down, he yanked her by her hair._

_ Trying to pull away, she grabbed onto his hand, "Ouch. Charlie you're really hurting me."_

_ "I wonder," pressing his face in close against hers, he could feel the hot breath on his cheeks. Her tears were sticking to his face and her heart was slowing down. Tightening his grip on her hair, he yanked her head downwards, causing her to yelp out in pain. "Have you been shagging Zabini all this time too? Hmm? Let's see how much of a slag you really are, Anica! Have you been shagging both Malfoy and Zabini?" he could feel her struggling as she tried to pull away from him. She was suddenly quiet as a mouse now, causing his anger to heighten. Mistaking her paling face as her admittance to shagging both her best friends, he flew her onto the bed. "I bet you like it like this don't you, you whore! I bet you shagged them both at once too, didn't you?" when she didn't reply, he grabbed onto her throat. "Didn't you?"_

_ Anica was too stunned to react. There was no shouting, no screaming for help, and no pleading for him to get off of her. Her eyes remained blank, staring into the deep ocean blue eyes. They were rough, resembling waves crashing on a rock. A storm was brewing, and the ocean was beginning to get rocky. There was a sound of a zipper being undone, and her shorts were tugged off from her. There was a moan above her, as a finger slowly began to caress her shaven skin. Her body shivered. His eyes finally left hers and looked down at her now exposed intimate parts. Dropping her head, she stared at the door; willing it to open. She knew it would be pointless to scream for help, he placed a spell on her room, he knew what he was going to do. He came in here with this purpose on his mind. Silently, she shouted out for Draco. Why wasn't he here? Draco was always there for her, but not now. She needed him right now, and he wasn't coming for her. She was alone._

_ "Let's see if you're as good as I often imagined," Anica's breath hitched as Charlie's lips began to explore her throat. Her mind was crying just as much as her eyes were; it wondered how it could be tricked so easily into believing that someone would never hurt her, by just one kiss. The kiss may have had sparks, but now it was dead. There was nothing safe about Charlie anymore. He was no longer compared to a protector, but he was now someone she wanted to hide from. In only mere minutes, she had gone from loving Charlie Weasley to fearing him. "Mmm," he moaned against her shirt, biting through the cotton fabric. _

_ "Charlie, please," she managed to find her voice. It was weak, just as weak as her. If she hadn't felt the vibrations it caused while leaving her throat, she wouldn't have even known it came from herself. "Don't do this."_

_ He could hear her. The fear reached his ears, but he was on a mission. He was hurt; she had betrayed him. All these weeks she had been playing it off as an innocent little girl: the beaten foster child who grew up knowing how to only trust a Malfoy. Now he understood why she trusted only Malfoy and why Zabini was so quick to give her a job when his brothers wouldn't – his brothers – a growl escaped him, forcing his fingers into her dryness as he thought about what would happen because his brothers didn't give her a job; she was probably shagging Zabini on their lunch break. Anica trembled beneath him, as he hooked his fingers inside of her. Moving his mouth back to her throat, he slowly began to nibble on her lightly but hard enough to make her wince out in pain. He started off with two fingers, no longer caring if he was too rough. He saw Malfoy nude, he knew she would be able to handle two fingers in the beginning. In went a third finger; she tried pulling away from him. _

_ "No!" calling on every ounce of strength she had left in her, Anica tried to scream now, but it didn't work. Her scream sounded like a mouse sneaking past a cat. It was too quiet. She continued to lie still until she felt him enter her. Just as quickly as his fingers left her, she felt the hardened pressure being slammed between her legs. He was harsh with her, bringing her back to the reality of it all. "No," remembering how to move, she began to pound her hands against his chest. She refused to look up at him. His heavy panting was sickening, making her want to throw up. "Charlie, no. Please! Charlie, leave me alone. Charlie! Stop!" there was no pleasure in what he was doing. The harder she would try to punch him, or scratch at him, the more turned on he seemed to become. The tears were burning the corners of her eyes as they leaked out. Shutting her eyes, she silently pleaded with the man she no longer knew._

_ "I trust you won't tell anyone about this," standing near the bedroom door, Charlie zipped his pants back up. Looking back at the bed one last time, his heart ached. The realization of what he just did, only now struck him. Her pleas for him to stop haunted his ears. The struggle of her beneath him made his skin crawl, and the way she trembled in the fetal position on the center of her bed, had him wanting to just hold her in his arms – arms she just scratched at, trying to get away from him – promising everything would be okay. "Oh fuck," taking a step closer towards the bed, he watched as she rocked herself, muttering things he couldn't understand. "Anica, I'm so-"_

_ "Sorry," the tear stricken voice finished for him. Refusing to look anywhere near him, she only nodded her head. There were several silent moments before she heard the click of her door. _

_ Draco found her lying on the floor of her room, hidden beneath her bed. Freshly showered, and dressed in an oversized hoodie and sweats, Anica held her knees to her chest as tears stained her troubled looking face. He sighed. Even in her sleep, she couldn't catch a break. It's been four hours since Charlie came out from her room, and no one's seen him since. The twins came up, looking for her to talk about something, but they couldn't find her. He knew though. He knew all her hidden spots. They were only thirteen when she started taking a liking to sleeping under her bed. A few times when she slept at the Zabini Manor, Blaise would find her sleeping under his bed. She felt it was safe for her under the bed; the one place where monsters are known to haunt, but have yet to be found._

_ "Anica?"_

_ Hearing his voice, Anica jerked her eyes open. Softened hurricane eyes were staring down at her. She didn't mean to fall asleep. "I was waiting for you," she admitted. "You took too long to find me."_

_ "I'm sorry, love," groaning as he realized she wouldn't leave her safe spot just yet, Draco crawled his way under the bed towards her. "I figured you and Charlie would need some time to talk things over."_

_ Her heart shattered. Of all the people to betray her, she never would have expected it from Draco. He was the one person who promised to never hurt her. "Y-you- you-"_

_ "Also talked to Hermione," he grinned, nodding his head in agreement to something she wasn't even thinking about. Eleven years after knowing everything there is to know about the shaking girl in front of him, Draco finally couldn't tell that anything was wrong with her. "I didn't tell her everything of course. It's not my place to tell her, but we talked. She said that she understands. And guess what?"_

_ He was still talking. He was happy, and smiling. Draco was smiling, and she was just raped. Her eyes searched his; crying out for help. Couldn't he see that she wasn't smiling? Didn't he know what happened to her? This was Draco – her Draco. He always knows. She continued to stare at him, waiting for him to realize what just happened to her, but he was still smiling. He had abandoned her. "Good for you guys," her tone was flat. "I just want to be alone, Draco."_

_ "Anica?" he knew that tone in her voice. "What's wrong?" there seemed to be a light in her eyes at his question. "Did Charlie not understand?" and the light in her eyes were gone. "Just give him time, love. I give it a week before you guys are dating. Just like me and Hermione. Oh, and Blaise and Ron as well. This turned out to be a good game after all, eh?"_

_ "Draco."_

_ "Yes?"_

_ He was still smiling. She had to blink back the fresh tears. "Can I just be alone now?"_

"Draco told me you've been ignoring his letters," closing up the cash register, Blaise looked over at Anica. For a girl who wouldn't go anywhere without looking decent, she came to work dressed in long black jeans and a beige t-shirt that reached her thighs. It looked as if she hadn't brushed her hair in days.

Shrugging her shoulders, the said girl restocked the shelves. "I've just been busy."

"You haven't spoken to him since that day, Anica," when he didn't hear a reply, he sighed. "You wanna talk about it?"

Fear swept over her, but it left as quickly as it came. "How's Ron?"

"He's fine. And don't change the subject. Sirius told me how you don't leave your room unless you're at work. Did anything happen?" he saw the way she stopped moving. It looked as if she was holding her breath. "Did-" he sighed. "It's none of my business why you shagged Draco, but did you tell Charlie about it?" there was still no reply, but he could hear the hitch in her breath at the mention of the red head. He sighed again. "You'll be fine, love. It's been just one week; he'll learn to accept it. Just look at Draco and Hermione. She doesn't care what you two did. Charlie just needs a little more time."

"Are you coming over for Harry's birthday next week?"

Blaise stared at her for a bit. She was moving again. Something was bothering her, but she wouldn't admit what it was. "Yes, I am. Ron's coming as well. Why don't you talk to Draco about it?"

"About what?" there was no doubt about it this time. The fear was emanating from her body as she turned to face her friend. "There's nothing to talk about," the squeak returned. "I'm fine Blaise. Perfectly fine."

"And Charlie?" he asked her. "How's Charlie?"

How's Charlie? How's the guy who raped her? Hmm… let's see. It's been a week since that horrendous game had forced out her truth, and since he's raped her. It's been a week since she actually ate a complete meal, and slept _on_ her bed. It's been a week since she's been able to actually look at him. Sirius called her downstairs three nights before, wanting to talk to her about Harry's birthday coming up, and she saw Charlie was there. She managed to play off the trembling from the cold, but couldn't find herself able to look anywhere in his direction. He tried talking to her a couple of times; wanting to apologize, and make up excuses, but she couldn't trust him. She couldn't resist the urge to vomit every time she saw him. It was easier to just stay hidden beneath her bed when she wasn't at work.

And it wasn't as if she _wanted_ to ignore Draco, it's just that he was the one who allowed Charlie to go to her room. If only Draco hadn't been so obsessed with Hermione, then he would have noticed the stench of forced sex on her sheets when he entered her room, he would have heard her screaming for help through the spelled door, and he would have known she was lying when she said she was fine. _Her_ Draco would have never had left her alone when she asked him to. But he wasn't _her_ Draco anymore. He belonged to Hermione. It wasn't as if she was jealous, because she wasn't. Draco had been in love with Hermione since their first year at Hogwarts, and she was happy for them. She was just hurt. It seemed like since Draco had Hermione now, she was left alone. Draco no longer knew when she was broken, and he would no longer protect her. Draco had Hermione now. He didn't need her.

"Anica," the glazed look in her eyes had been scaring Blaise for the past ten minutes. He asked her how Charlie was doing, and her face went blank. She was thinking hard about something, and it distracted her. "Anica, do you want me to get Draco for you? You need to talk. Whatever went on with you and Draco in the past, it's starting to affect your now. I'll owl him, and tell him to come here. You two can talk in the back if you want. No one can interrupt you."

"Let him go."

"But-"

"No," shaking her head, she forced out a smile. Luckily for her, Draco couldn't tell when her face was lying anymore. If he could, and he was here to witness this, he would yank her hair roughly for lying so much. "I told you I'm fine Blaise, just feeling a little under the weather. Charlie's-" choking back the sour tasting bile that just formed in her mouth, she continued, "He's fine as well. I've just been busy with work, and trying to help plan Harry's party for next week. No need to bother Draco with anything. Let him and Hermione be."

"Are you sure?" he allowed her to see that he didn't believe her. He didn't believe her, but he would accept it for now, only because her excuse had very valid pretense. "Cause I'm sure Hermione wouldn't mind. And I know Draco wants to talk to you. He misses you."

"Let him go."

**A/N: Please don't hurt me(: I'm sorry it's so short and I ended this one how I did, but I haven't gone home since I uploaded last week's chapter. Luckily for me, I brought my laptop with me to my cousins so I could write this one, but Kalihi is lame, and no one has internet on this side ): and I didn't have much time to write because I'm spending all my time at football for my nephews, clubs for fundraisers, and scrubbing my cousin's house for an inspection. Also tomorrow is my friends funeral. I finally made it to my house for a couple of minutes, and I wanted to upload something for you guys for tonight! Maybe I'll upload another short chapter before next week Monday or Tuesday, just to make it up for you guys. If not, then I'll make next week's chapter really long(: **

**Please review! Let me know what you guys thought of this chapter! And let me know what you guys think of Draco and Anica's history. Why did they do the **_**do**_**?**


	10. Birthdays and Brooms

**A/N: There you go. Because I promised another chapter before Tuesday. It's now 1 in the morning on Oahu, and I'm tired as hell, and have to be up at 5. I already know I won't be able to write until possibly Sunday or Monday. Maybe even Tuesday, so I made it longer then I said I would (: enjoy.**

**Oh and about Charlie in the last chapter. I know guys! I'm sorry, but it had to happen to make the storyline. You'll understand soon enough. I've actually had it planned from the very beginning; it was going to happen either way. I already know the entire story line, it's just writing it down that gets to be too difficult for me. Well I hope you guys enjoy this chapter :3**

Birthdays and Brooms

Laughter filled the air, while the aroma of chocolate velvet cake floated throughout the kitchen. Tonks and Ginny were cooing over Teddy who was crawling along the sitting room. Remus held a goblet filled with wine while smiling down at his young wife, and the light in her eyes as she watched their son. Hermione laid her head on Draco's chest, with her legs resting in his lap. Draco, whose fingers were twirled into his girlfriend's fingers, was in a deep conversation with Ron about an Auror position at the Ministry of Magic. Blaise sat next to his boyfriend, holding his hand in his, but watched the red head that nobody seemed to notice had darkened over the last couple of weeks.

"Thank you," Harry hugged his godfather, "For throwing this for me."

"It wasn't me," the now shy _Animagus_ admitted. Taking a sip from his own wine goblet, he nodded his head up towards the stairs. "Anica was the one who put everything into planning this party for you. I mentioned something about your birthday to her last week, and since then this was all she would think about."

Turning his head toward the stairs, Harry knew something was wrong. Ever since that damned game of truth and dare, Anica had been off. Everyone noticed it, but it seemed like she was always missing when anyone wanted to approach her about it. "Is she coming down later?" it's been two hours since everyone arrived for his little party, everyone except for the girl who planned it.

"She said something about a last minute wrapping of your gift," Sirius assured him. "She should be down here soon."

"I'll check on her."

"Tell her I said to hurry up, will you Charlie?"

Touching his hand to the railing, Charlie nodded his head. "Sure thing, Sirius."

Fred and George were laughing with their dad about how Ron was the one who loved blokes, and not Percy – like they had all thought – when they noticed Charlie walking upstairs. Molly and Arthur were just as stunned as everyone else when Ron came home later that night, after the game, and came out to everyone who wasn't there with him earlier. They were even more shocked to find out he was now dating Blaise Zabini. Of course, they still loved him but they never expected it to be him. They always figured Percy would be stumbling out of some closet any day now. They were quick to accept Blaise into their family even more, especially with all the praising from Anica about him. They trusted Ron was in good hands. Nudging George with his elbow, Fred told their father they were going to get something to drink then tugged his twin after him.

"Anica," Charlie knocked on the door.

There was loud banging sound, as if something fell off a bed. Charlie knocked once more then there was a choking sound from behind the door. It took a minute before the door cracked open… just a little. "Yeah?"

It pained him to hear the fear in her voice. Fear that he knew he caused just two weeks before. "Sirius said to hurry up," he made a show of taking a couple steps away from the door. He wanted to show her that he wouldn't hurt her ever again.

"I'm just wrapping Harry's gift," she nodded her head at him, staring at the floor. "I'll be down in a minute."

"Alright," the door shut. Sighing, Charlie rubbed his hands over his face. This wasn't what he wanted. If only time turners weren't illegal anymore, he would use one and erase what he did to her.

"Everything alright up here,big bro?"

Glaring at his brothers as if everything were their fault, Charlie hissed out, "What are you two doing up here, the parties downstairs."

"We could say the same to you," Fred hissed back.

"Sirius sent me up here to check on Anica."

"And we sent ourselves to check on Anica," George retaliated.

Walking over to the door, Fred knocked. "Anica, it's us. Everything okay in there?"

There was a muffled sound of rustling paper, before the shout came. "I'll be right there Fred. Just give me a couple more seconds."

"Alright, love," he shouted back, before turning to his older brother. He could see the flames in Charlie's eyes. "Why don't you go back downstairs, Charlie? We can wait for her."

Nodding his head, Charlie knew it would be stupid to argue. He was curious though. How much did the twins know? After all, they knew everything. "Fine."

"What do you think happened between them?" George asked once Charlie was out of sight.

Sighing, Fred was now staring at the slowly opening bedroom door, "I don't know," he whispered to his twin, "But whatever it is, Anica's scared out of her wits with Charlie."

"You don't think he hurt her, do you?" George also whispered.

Feigning a grin at the pale girl that was now standing right in front of him, Fred shrugged his shoulders, and continued to whisper, "The man works with dragons. Who knows what he's capable of anymore," raising his voice now, so Anica could hear him, Fred noticed the way she moved away when he went to wrap his arm around her shoulder, "Ready to get down?" he wiggled his eyebrows.

"Mhmm."

Seeing as how she still refused to have her magic returned to her, Anica asked Kreacher to help her set everything up. Charlie offered his help, but once he entered the same room as her, she went into hiding once more. It wasn't until he left the manor for an hour, that she finally came back out from underneath her bed. The couches were all charmed a scarlet color while the curtains were gold. Gryffindor colored streamers were hanging from the ceiling of the sitting room while golden snitch shaped balloons flew around them. Muggle music played all around them, courtesy of her radio. There was a table covered with presents from everyone, and another table filled with snacks and drinks. Kreacher was even wearing a scarlet and golden colored pillowcase made from silk. The Slytherins didn't seem to mind their rival colors being paraded around the manor for the occasion, nor did they mind the giant lion hologram walking around the room. _Happy Birthday Harry!_ was hanging from one wall to the other, causing Harry to grin like the Cheshire Cat.

"Happy birthday, Harry!"

Turning to the timid voice from behind him, Harry grinned: dressed in scarlet colored shorts, and a plain white baby tee decorated with tiny lions, stood Anica. Her hair was tied up in a ponytail, and she held a box in her hands. "Anica!" he shouted loudly, causing all heads to turn. It's been two weeks since anyone who wasn't Blaise, saw her. "Thanks for doing this for me."

Wincing as Harry pulled her into a tight embrace, Anica avoided the watching eyes of Draco. He seemed to notice her reaction to being touched. "You're welcome," pulling away from Harry as quickly as possible without making it too obvious, she handed him the box. "I hope you like it. Kreacher helped me to wrap it."

"I'm sure I'll love it," he assured her. "Can I open it now?"

"Whenever you want to."

"No," Sirius shook his head, "Not yet. Now's not the time for presents, Harry. Hullo, love."

"Hi Dad," reluctantly hugging her father, Anica forced out a smile. Her eyes landed on the seething red head in the corner. His hair seemed to have grown an inch since the last time she's actually looked at him. His normally faded jeans were now black, and his usual white t-shirt turned a bloody red color. It seemed she wasn't the only one who changed.

"Anica!"

Patting his daughter on the back, Sirius, who remained oblivious to everything around him, pointed his chin towards the blonde on the couch that had just called out to her. "Go be with your friends."

It seemed like hours. The thirteen steps that it took to get from where she was standing, to the couch, seemed like hours. Folding her arms, she held onto each forearm with tightened fingers. "Hey guys," she sat on the edge of the couch, away from the two couples.

"Hullo, Anica," Hermione grinned. She could feel there was tension, and quickly stood up. "I'm going to check on Molly and see how the cake is coming along."

"And I need to talk to Dad about something at the Ministry," Ron also stood up.

Pressing his lips to the girl's forehead, Blaise followed his boyfriend's actions, "I don't have some lie to make up. So just talk, and I'll come back later. Love you guys."

Wanting to laugh at the obviousness that was Blaise Zabini, Anica couldn't muster out anything. In just two weeks' time, she had forgotten how to laugh. "I'm glad you and Hermione are happy," she finally broke the silence. Brushing a wayward strand of hair out of her face, she smiled at the only friend she once had. "It's good to see you happy for once, Draco."

His eyes were carefully watching her. She was hiding something from him. "I'm a prat," he sighed. "I knew I shouldn't have left you that night. I knew you shouldn't have been left alone, and I knew that you needed me with you, but I…" Anica watched him struggle to find the right words to say to her. "I don't know what was wrong with me Anica. I think I was just so happy to finally have Hermione with me, that I didn't listen to my instincts. You needed me, and I left you. Alone! I'm a horrible best friend."

Her heart was still. Her lips curved. Her eyes watered. There were no thoughts in her mind. Lunging forward, she wrapped her arms around Draco's neck. "You'll always be my best friend," she knew it wasn't a response to what he just told her. She knew that he still left her abandoned, and she knew it wasn't exactly an apology. She didn't tell him she was fine, nor did she tell him what happened, but she didn't know what to say. Could she forgive him for leaving her when she needed him the most? It felt like she could never trust him again. The one person she had ever trusted had abandoned her, but he didn't apologize, and that seemed to make her hope for a better tomorrow with Draco. He knew what apologizing meant to her. When you apologized, it just meant you were going to hurt her again.

"You've been ignoring me," he whispered into her ear.

Pulling out of the hug, Anica simply only nodded her head. "You left me, Draco."

"In that one moment," Draco nodded his head then pulled her back into the hug. He felt her resist him, and it shattered him. He hadn't meant to lose her trust. He's known her from when they were only seven years old. Now at eighteen, it took only ten seconds to lose eleven years between them. "But not now, don't pull away from me, Anica," he pleaded with her, "Not now. Not after everything."

She heard his words, and she knew he could feel her pulling away from him, but she did it anyway. Standing up, she stared down at him. "I'm going to check on Molly and Hermione. By the way, I don't think I said it, but I approve of your girlfriend, Draco Malfoy," smiling a playful sort of smile, she winked at him, "Now you can kiss her in peace without wondering what your sister would say if she knew you were dating a muggle-born."

Draco heard the teasing tone in her voice. Anica had referred to herself as his sister, still. But he heard her undertone. She still pulled away from him. He lost her trust. "I appreciate that," his smile was low, and Anica could see it. She could see him breaking, and the sorrow in his eyes.

The twins kept Anica close to them, not allowing Charlie anywhere near her. They didn't know what happened, but they knew _something_ had happened. Draco noticed how jumpy Anica was anytime someone would go near her, even himself and Sirius, but he didn't think to watch Charlie as closely as the twins did. The thoughts she was thinking; he was sure he knew, but he was missing some of it. The party continued on. Two more hours of laughing, talking, and eating. Charlie continued to sulk in a corner, not realizing he was drawing the attention of an extremely concerned Blaise, and a watchful godfather. Hermione was now cooing with Ginny over Teddy, while Tonks talked to Ron about the Auror position he and Draco had been talking about earlier.

Finally, it came time for presents. Molly and Arthur proudly presented their golden wrapped box to Harry, who was already smiling. In all the years he had known the Weasleys, he's always loved their gifts. They didn't have much, but they gave from their hearts. His jaw dropped at what he opened. Right before they left the Burrow, the Weasleys had all called him into the kitchen, and showed that they added his name onto their _Weasley Family Clock_, but this was a mini version of that. It was small enough to be placed in his pocket, and had all of their names on it, including: Hermione's, Sirius's, and Anica's names. Thanking his future in-laws, Harry continued opening his gifts. Remus and Tonks had gotten him a new trunk for his belongings, seeing as how they knew his old one was breaking down already, and Teddy brought him _Gobstones_. Draco brought him five new robes: one was scarlet, one was gold, and the other three were all black. Proud of her gift, Hermione boldly handed her best friend the magenta colored box. Harry gasped loudly, and started to laugh. He held up a new marbled _Wizards Chess _box. Ron's gift consisted of a variety of; _Self Shuffling Playing Cards, Exploding Snaps, _a_ Screaming Yoyo, _and _Chocolate Frogs. _Charlie gave Harry a _Secrecy Sensor_ that could vibrate when someone near lies, or is trying to conceal something. Blaise noted the fear in Anica's eyes at the gift. Blaise's gift consisted of _Quidditch _books, and a set of _Chudley Cannon robes_, while Sirius gave him a _Pensieve._ The twins gave Harry an assortment of every product in their shop, while Ginny blushed. She apparently wanted to wait until they were alone to give him his gift; earning Harry glares from all her brothers while her parents pretended not to notice anything. Only one box remained, and Harry was curious. Looking over at Blaise, who was rolling his eyes, Harry quickly snatched up the gold and silver wrappings.

"Oi, that's not fair!" Ron whined once the box fell apart.

With widened eyes, Hermione grabbed the now opened box. "Oh wow. Kreacher used his magic to expand the box. I'm always amazed at how an elf's magic works."

"I'm always amazed at how your magic works, my love," Draco grinned, placing a kiss on her cheek.

Blushing, Hermione kissed him gently on his lips. "Thanks, Draco."

"Can we play now?" Harry asked, jumping to his feet. Holding the _Firebolt2008_ closely to his side, he looked like a muggle kid who had just received a bike for Christmas. "Can we? Can we go outside, and play Quidditch now? I want to wear my new robes, and ride my new broom."

Laughing, Sirius finally noticed the shudder his daughter emanated as he placed his arm around her. Raising a curious eyebrow at her, he remained still. "How fitting that my daughter should buy you this broom, Harry, on your eighteenth birthday, when it was I who brought you your very first broom on your first birthday, and again in your third year."

"I love it," Harry was still beaming from ear to ear. "Thank you, Anica."

"You're welcome, Harry," she smiled. It seemed like she still couldn't laugh. And this was very funny. She very much wanted to laugh, but she just couldn't do it.

"C'mon everyone," Harry shouted, running for the door, "Let's play Quidditch. Same teams as last time."

There was a pause in her heart. Charlie was holding onto her hand and leading her outside. She wanted to shout out; scream for help, but once again, she was revered silent. Draco, who suspected nothing of the red headed dragon tamer, was busy trying to convince his girlfriend to fly this time, while the twins gawked at the panic in Anica's face. This panic wasn't coming from her fear of flying, but from the touch that was coming from their older brother. Looking around to see if they were seeing things, they caught the growl coming from Blaise. It seemed he's been extra cautious as well. It took only one minute, but everyone was outside by now. Harry – already dressed in his new _Chudley Cannon _robes, and mounting his new broom – was in the air along with everyone else. The adults were all inside, and Charlie was still holding onto Anica's wrist. Her eyes were watering as she peered up at him. The twins were on their brooms as well, but stayed closely to the ground, watching to make sure Anica would be alright.

"Let go of me," she finally found her voice.

Releasing his grip, Charlie spoke in a low tone. "They already suspect something is going on between us. You rode with me last week, Nica, just ride with me again."

"I don't want you touching me," she shook her head.

"Because I'm not Malfoy, or Zabini."

Jumping back at his harsh tone, Anica refused to be weak anymore. Her heart may have been pounding, and her head was spinning, but she didn't want to be weak anymore. "_Zabini _is dating your _brother_," she replied back in her own harsh tone, "And what happened between _Malfoy_ and _I _is none of your business. I don't want you touching me, because you ra-"

"Just get on the broom," he didn't want to hear her say it. He didn't want to hear those words. If she spoke about it, then it made it real. He didn't want it to be real. He didn't want any of it to be real.

"I'm not riding with you."

"Are you going to tell them?" he asked. He saw the flash of fear across her face one more. This time he sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. "If you don't get on this broom with me, they're going to question it. Are you planning on telling them what happened?"

Nervously chewing on her lower lip, Anica looked up. She saw the fear in the twins' eyes, and the curiosity in Blaise's eyes. Looking further up, she saw that Draco was watching her. Hermione was clutching tightly onto him from behind, but instead of whispering assuring words into her ear like the last time, he was watching her with Charlie. She could see the questioning look he was giving her. Swallowing spit, she stepped closer to the broom. "I'm doing it for Draco."

"Of course you are," he bit out. Charlie was excited that she agreed to get on the broom with him. He didn't think his words would work, but it did. Then she had to go and mention Malfoy to him. She was only riding on his broom with him because of Malfoy.

Twitching as she felt Charlie wrap his arms around her from behind, Anica shut her eyes. "And for Harry," her voice was quivering. "For his birthday because he wants this."

"Everything alright?" Draco asked.

Nodding her head, Anica forced out a nervous smile. "Just nervous, even though I was alright the last time, I'm still scared of brooms you know."

Feeling the vibration coming from his pocket, Harry became confused. Why would Anica lie about anything? Turning to Draco, he could see the confusion in his face as well. Of course Draco wouldn't need a _Secrecy Sensor_ to know the girl was lying about something. "You ready to play?" he asked.

The game was ten minutes in. Anica kept her eyes shut, pretending that it was Draco holding onto her instead of Charlie, but she knew otherwise. His hold was different from Draco. Whereas Draco made her feel safe and protected, Charlie was cold and empty. She was freezing, and there was nothing to keep her warm. "I'm sorry about what I did," Charlie's breath was hot on her cold ear. "I didn't mean to hurt you like that. I'm really sorry."

"Put me down," her eyes finally opened. The food she was slowly snacking on earlier, was finding its way up her throat.

"I just-"

"Put me down right now," her voice was getting louder. They were in the middle of the Quidditch match, but she didn't care. Everyone stopped flying on their brooms, and was staring at her. "Let me down now. Take me to the ground. Take me to the ground. Take me to the ground."

Punching the air, Charlie paced back and forth along his room. It's been two hours since the Quidditch match, and Anica still hadn't left her room. Once he landed on the ground with her, she held onto her stomach and began throwing up. Draco was immediately by her side, while the twins watched him closely. His own stomach curled up as he watched Draco holding onto the sick girl, rubbing her back, and promising everything would be alright. Ron ran inside the manor, and returned with the adults. While Sirius stood a couple of feet away, asking what he should do, Molly grabbed Anica away from Draco. The hurt was clear on the blonde ferret's face when Anica gladly shoved away from him, quick to accept the motherly arms of the Weasley matriarch. It's been two hours since then, and Anica was still hiding from everyone.

"Tell us what the bloody hell you did to her," his door burst open.

Turning his bloodshot eyes to the twins, Charlie lifted his wand. _"Muffliato!"_ the uttered spell caused him to flinch. "I raped Anica."

_"Avada Ke-" _

"Fred, no!" quickly grabbing his twin's wand away from him, George blinked at the brother he no longer knew.

"He deserves to die," he knew it. Fred knew it. He knew there could be only one explanation to why Anica was so jumpy, but he didn't want to admit it. He didn't want to believe it. "George, let me kill him."

Falling to his knees, Charlie shook his head. His tears were as visible as Anica's had been that same day he hurt her. "I-I was pissed. She shagged Malfoy. And Zabini too, and I-"

"Zabini?" George choked out. "Zabini? You mean Blaise Zabini?" when Charlie absentmindedly nodded his head, George could feel his temperature rising. "You mean the same Blaise Zabini whose been shagging our little brother? The same Blaise Zabini who's into only strictly blokes? The same Blaise Zabini who's never even kissed a bird before? That same Blaise Zabini? Is that the same Blaise Zabini who shagged Anica?"

It struck him. What she told him earlier about Blaise preferring his brother over her. She was right. Blaise was gay. Dropping his head into his hands, Charlie's sobs were loud now. "I don't know… I don't know. I'm sorry… just so sorry. I-I didn't mean to. I didn't even realize what I was doing until I left her room. I'm just so sorry."

"Why?" blood was dripping from the palms of his hands, but Fred didn't care.

"I thought – I thought she was with them both. And all… all I could see was-was her with M-Malfoy, sneaking around the place with him after Sirius and I have gone to bed. Shagging Zabini on her lunch breaks. Shagging them both at once. I-I forgot Zabini just admitted he was gay. I just kept see-seeing them over and over, and over again in my mind. And she was laughing at me. All those weeks I was in love with her, and she was shagging them both," continuing to cry through his fingers and loudly sob, Charlie still shook his head, "I went into her room. I knew what I was going to do once Malfoy's name left her lips. I went into her room, and I silenced it. I pinned her down, and she fought me. She scratched me, and kicked, and punched, but I was stronger than her. I _am _stronger than her. I called her so many horrible names. And I-I," finally removing his hands, he looked up at his two brothers. The disgust, plainly visible on their faces, "And I raped Anica."


	11. Truth Behind These Eyes

Truth Behind These Eyes

_I fell in love next to you_

_Burning fires in this room._

_It just fits,_

_Light and smooth_

_Like my feet in my shoes._

_Little one, lie with me._

_Sew your heart to my sleeve._

_We'll stay quiet_

_Underneath shooting stars_

_If it helps you sleep._

_And hold me tight,_

_Don't let me breathe._

_Feeling like_

_You won't believe._

Holding tightly onto the sobbing girl, Draco was confused. Everything was fine. They were playing Quidditch, and his team was winning, then suddenly Anica became sick. Sobbing quietly, her dry tears stained her cheeks. Wrapping his arms around her, Draco could feel she was shivering beneath him. This had become her sanctuary: blankets taken from a spare room that no one knew about, thrown onto the hard floor, with borrowed pillows as well. In the surface of the room everything was fine. But beneath the comfort of her bed, Anica had formed a new home. Blankets and pillows to lie on, books surrounding her which were probably what helped her to fall asleep at night, and a tiny little light bulb that Kreacher most likely had to charm to stay on permanently. She was scared of something, and for the first time in his life, Draco didn't know of what.

This was their song. It was the beginning of the school term, and Draco was scared. The golden trio was missing from Hogwarts, and there were rumors that an uproar was taking over. He escaped one night, taking off to the muggle world, where he ran to Anica. Like most of her nights, she was hidden beneath her bed, reading a book of muggle fairytales. When he came to her, she moved over allowing him to cuddle in with her. They were both freezing, but the reminder that they had somebody to love helped to warm them up. This song had been playing softly from the earphones of the abandoned iPod, and Draco found himself humming along to it. He held Anica in his arms, watching as she struggled with her memories trying to force herself to sleep. Anica, sensing Draco's own worries, pressed her body tightly into his, reminding him that he was never alone; she would always be with him.

_There's a firefly_

_Loose tonight._

_Better catch it,_

_Before it burns this place down._

_And I lie_

_If I don't feel so right._

_But the world looks better_

_Through your eyes._

_There's a firefly_

_Loose tonight._

_Better catch it,_

_Before it burns this place down._

_And I lie_

_If I don't feel so right._

_But the world looks better_

_Through your eyes._

He sang this song to her that night… and any other night that he would find her trembling beneath her bed. Tracing her fingers with his, Draco felt guilty. Anica was in pain, something that anybody could see. Of course he didn't expect her father or her godbrother or anyone else to notice it, but he was her brother dammit! He was supposed to be there for her. He didn't give her months of therapy, and nights of consoling words just to have her fall back into her depression. Stopping his fingers on her wrist, Draco flipped it around, his thumb gently caressing where his magic hid the scars of her weakness. Feeling the heat of her tears fall on his neck, her hair was tickling his chin. He could feel the faint beating of her heart, and his own heart ached. He had let Granger get between them. He broke his one promise to Anica. He wasn't there when she needed him, and he allowed her to get hurt. He had no idea why she was crying, and he couldn't get through to her. Without realizing it, soon enough his own tears blended in with hers.

_Teach my skin_

_Those new tricks_

_Warm me up_

_With your lips._

_Heart to heart_

_Melt me down_

_It's too cold_

_In this town._

_Close your eyes_

_Lean on me._

_Face to mouth_

_Lips to cheek._

_Feeling numb_

_In my feet._

_You're the one_

_To help me get to sleep._

Anica could feel Draco's thoughts burning in his mind, and she wanted nothing more than to tell him the truth, but a part of her gave up hope. There once was a time when Draco could read her thoughts. He knew her emotions, he knew why each teardrop fell, and he knew what she was thinking. If he couldn't see it in her face now, then things have changed. And she knew it. She knew things were different just by looking at him. He was no longer the tortured little boy who had to hide everything from his father. He was no longer being forced to hate the girl he loved because of her blood. He didn't have to hide behind a cloak of strength anymore, and he was no longer being told what to think. He wore the dark mark. He fought in the war. He killed who he had to. He proved his worth. And in the end he got the girl. It worried her. Leaving her to think where that left her now.

They were no longer, Draco and Anica. They were now simply just Draco. And just Anica. She was no longer the weak little orphan girl with a secret. She no longer had a secret best friend who was a wizard. She was no longer in high school, and she was no longer anyone's punching bag. She found her father – well he found her, but it's all the same. She had a place in the world now, a reason to belong. She wondered though, did _they_ still belong? She had grown up all her life with only Draco by her side. Occasionally, Blaise would be there as well. But now… now Draco had Hermione, and Blaise had Ron. She knew the day would come when they would each find their loves, and she was happy for Draco. He found the love that he had always fantasized about. Draco had Hermione. Blaise had Ron. And she… well she just had another secret; the first secret that Draco doesn't know about.

_And hold me tight,_

_Don't let me breathe._

_Feeling like_

_You won't believe._

_There's a firefly_

_Loose tonight._

_Better catch it,_

_Before it burns this place down._

_And I lie_

_If I don't feel so right._

_But the world looks better_

_Through your eyes._

_There's a firefly_

_Loose tonight._

_Better catch it,_

_Before it burns this place down._

_And I lie_

_If I don't feel so right._

_But the world looks better_

_Through your eyes._

Feeling the humming of Draco's chest as he sang her their song, Anica kept her eyes shut. His eyes were watching her closely, and that was when she remembered. This wasn't the first secret that she hid from Draco. This was the second. She did so well at blocking that one moment out from her memory, that it came as a shock to even her. Draco felt her stiffen against him, and his singing stopped. He pulled her closer to him. Fresh tears now fell from her eyes. She forgot about everything. Finding out that Sirius Black was her father, and even falling in love with Charlie, helped her mind to permanently erase it from her memory. Until now. Safe in the protective arms of Draco, and contemplating that she wouldn't have him forever, she remembered everything. Finally opening her eyes, she looked up at Draco. Nodding her head, she asked him to continue their song. She wanted to hear all of it. It was his singing voice that she thought of on nights she couldn't sleep. It was his arms that she imagined herself being wrapped in when she was scared she would fall weak again. It was Draco that she needed now more than anything. Especially if she was about to fight this on her own.

_It's only been_

_One night of love._

_And maybe,_

_That is not enough._

_Hold me tight,_

_Don't let me breathe._

_Feeling like_

_You won't believe._

Thinking back to the moment on the couch between them, Anica knew what she had to do. It would hurt her. It would possibly even hurt Draco, but this was what had to be done. He felt guilty for leaving her when she needed him the most. And she needed to know that she could trust him again. She needed to know that he would be there for her when she needed him. But he also needed Hermione. They were no longer alone. They had a family now. He had his mum who needed him, and he had Hermione who loved him. She knew that, and she needed to let him go. She meant what she told him. She approved of Hermione. And she was still his sister. That would never change. But siblings do say their goodbyes after a while. They weren't kids anymore. They were growing up. In just one month from now, she would be eighteen. This was something he needed. Not her. Him! And this was the one thing she could give to him.

_It's only been_

_One night of love._

_And maybe,_

_That is not enough._

_Hold me tight,_

_Don't let me breathe._

_Feeling like_

_You won't believe._

"You should go see Hermione."

Stopping just one verse before the song ended, Draco felt her shift against him again. He could hear the forced tone in her voice. "She knows that I'm checking up on you, Anica," he shook his head. "She'll be alright. You need me right now."

"No," her smile was worn out already; tired from being overused to put on a fake show. "_She_ needs you Draco. I just realized that. You've been in love with her from when we were only eleven years old. This is your time to finally be happy. Be with the one that you love."

"I love you, Anica."

"But not like that," she laughed. An actual laugh had found its way from her throat. "Not the way you love Hermione. You're free now, Draco. You don't have to impress Lucius anymore. You don't have to hide between blank emotions. You're no longer a prisoner. You're not trapped in hell anymore. You're free. And you need to be with Hermione."

"But you-"

"I'm fine," Anica shook her head again. This time though, she pulled out of his arms. "And I'll still be here. You can love Hermione, and love me at the same time. I'll still be here for you, and I know that you'll be there for me when I go to you, but it isn't now, Draco."

He heard her words, but he could see the fear in her eyes. This was something that's been haunting him as well. Now that he had Hermione, what would happen to them? This was happening just too quickly though. He hadn't expected Anica to answer it for them now. Not when he just got her back. "I don't want to leave you tonight. You were sick earlier, love, you puked once you hit the ground. You're hiding secrets from me. I can see it in your eyes. Something is wrong, and you shouldn't be alone."

"I'm not alone," she reminded him. Grabbing onto his hand, she sighed. "I know you don't want to leave me, Draco, but you should. Go to Hermione. Tell her the truth."

"What?" he searched her face, looking to see if she had been joking, but he could see the seriousness in her eyes. "Are you serious?"

Nodding her head, Anica feigned another smile. "Dead serious. Go to her, Draco. Tell Hermione everything that happened. Then hold her in your arms, and tell her how much you've always loved her. Assure her that _our_ relationship won't come between you two."

"And _our _relationship?" he asked her. "Mine and Hermione's relationship? Will that come between us?"

"Of course not," she shook her head. "I'm still your sister, Draco Malfoy. And when the day comes that you marry her, it will be _me_ she has to talk to. I'm still going to be there, right by your side no matter what. But in order for you guys to work, she needs to know everything. No secrets."

"And our secrets?" he asked. "You're keeping secrets from me, Anica. And don't try to deny it. You're hiding something, and I don't get it. We've never kept secrets from each other. Do you not trust me anymore?"

This was it. The question she had been asking herself all day. Taking in a deep breath, she saw the hurt in his face. She thought back to all those times that he had been there for her, all those times that he would appear out of nowhere, just holding her until she fell asleep. All those nights they would stay at the park just talking. All the letters that they wrote, and all of his fears that he trusted her with… "Of course I still trust you," it was true. He may have left her in just one moment, but he was there for her through the rest. She could see that now. Although he abandoned her that one day, he came back to her, trying to fix her just like before. "You worry too much, love. I'm fine."

Breathing out a sigh of relief, Draco watched her closely. She wouldn't lie about trusting him; that much he knew. If she said she still trusted him, then she still trusted him. But he heard the sigh in her voice as she told him she was fine. She was anything but fine. He knew that now. "I left you that night, and you're sleeping under the bed again, Anica," he rolled his eyes. "You're lying to me right now. You're not fine. I can talk to Hermione tomorrow."

"You can talk to Hermione right now," she also rolled her eyes. Yes, they were fine now. He was going back to being a prat.

"And leave you here under the bed on your own again?" he asked her.

Chuckling, she shook her head. Taking in a large gulp of whatever strength she had left in her, she stared him in his eyes. "I'm going to talk to Charlie."

"Oh," his name again. Draco didn't know why, but ever since Anica started to ignore him, he knew that it had something to do with that one particular Weasley. He knew how much Anica was falling in love with the dragon tamer since that first night she met him, but now his name brought a vile taste to his mouth. "And that's why you want me to talk to Hermione?"

"I have my own reasoning to want to tell Charlie the truth," she shook her head. She prayed that he didn't catch the glare in her eyes, but the puzzling confusion in his face proved otherwise, "But like I said, I want you to tell Hermione so she'll know the truth. I don't want secrets between either of you. Not when I'm that secret. She needs to know that what happened between us was just a one-time thing, Draco."

"Do you regret it?" he asked.

Smiling a warm smile, she placed a hand on his cheek. He twitched at the iciness of her touch. "Never. I'm glad that that happened, but it will never happen again. And I know how much you must want to tell her everything. So tell her. Do you regret it?"

"Never," his smile matched hers. Continuing to stare at her, he pulled both her hands into his. The warmness took over her eyes. "Like I promised you, I am always going to be there for you. You needed me that night, and I was glad to be there for you. I pray that it never has to happen again, but if it does, then I'll be there for you. Just like I was the last time. I do love you, Anica."

"I know," leaning forward, she pressed her lips to his forehead. "And I love you too, Draco. But so does Hermione. And you're stalling right now. So go be with the love of your life. And remember now-"

"Yeah, yeah," blushing, Draco wiggled out from beneath her bed. "Hold her tightly, and tell her how much I've always loved her."

_There's a firefly_

_Loose tonight._

_Better catch it,_

_Before it burns this place down._

_And I lie_

_If I don't feel so right._

_But the world looks better_

_Through your eyes._

_There's a firefly_

_Loose tonight._

_Better catch it,_

_Before it burns this place down._

_And I lie_

_If I don't feel so right._

_But the world looks better_

_Through your eyes._

**A/N: Short? Maybe! Well as promised, I made you guys another chapter last week to make up for not posting one that other week. But nobody read it yet ): or if you did, you didn't review it. I think you guys are too used to me posting only on Mondays or Tuesdays(: cause I had that one up since Thursday. So let me know what you think of that one. And of this one! :3 **

**The song is called **_**Firefly**_** by **_**Ed Sheeran**_**, and I absolutely love all of his songs. In case you guys haven't heard of him, or any of his songs. Rupert Grint (Ron Weasley) is in his music video, **_**Lego House**_**, so you guys should go watch that.(:**

**Oh and one last thing! This is super IMPORTANT!**

**I'm doing two parts to the next chapter. Draco is going to tell Hermione what happened between him and Anica, and Anica will also tell the story. But whose version should I post in the story? I'm thinking of posting Anica's version as the next chapter -since this story is about her and Charlie- and then posting Draco's version as a one-shot linked to this story? Tell me what you think! I'll go by most of what you guys say.**

**Thanks for listening to my rambles. I love you all!**


	12. Snow White

**Warning: Dark! Speaks of rape! Not as detailed as when Charlie raped Anica, but speaks of it. I've read stories where readers are pissed with the writer because they didn't warn them about a chapter being dark, and it only mentioned cutting. So I'm warning you guys… this chapter talks about rape, torture, and cutting. So be warned…**

Snow White

Dusting off his knees, Draco laughed at Anica as she rolled out from beneath her bed. Dressed in black sweats, and one of his 'borrowed' green long sleeves, her hair was a mess. It looked as if she hadn't brushed it in days, making her look like an insane woman. Shuddering at the sudden image of his aunt Bella, he caught the sudden glimpse in Anica's eyes. Cocking an eyebrow at her, he noticed her smile was fake. Again! Shaking her head at him, to convince Draco she was alright, Anica couldn't believe what she had just volunteered. Now Draco would be expecting her to tell Charlie the truth. She had no problem with telling Charlie everything. She wanted to tell him everything; she even tried that one night, before… well before _it_ happened. Now she just didn't want to see him. The mere mention of his name caused her stomach to curl in the most unnatural of ways.

"Whoa!" holding the doors handle in his hand, Draco looked up at the two fuming red heads in front of him. "Everything alright guys?"

Looking past Draco, Fred stared directly at Anica. "We need to talk!"

"Now!" added an equally pissed off George.

Looking between the twins, Draco turned to look at his best friend. There was no denying the shaking from her body. "What's going on, Anica?"

She could see it in the twins' eyes. They knew the truth. "Nothing Draco," she spoke to him, but her eyes remained on the twins. "Go to Hermione. Remember what we talked about?"

Nodding his head, Draco had to jump backwards to prevent himself from getting hit by the beater Weasley twins. "You… err… you gonna be okay?"

"She's going to be fine Draco," George turned to the blonde. He heard the questioning tone, and could sense his concern. Lowering his tone, he was glad that his twin chose not to speak at all. "We just need to talk about what's going on between her and Charlie."

Nodding his head again, Draco looked over at Anica once more. After an assuring head nod from her, he stepped out the door. "I'll be by first thing in the morning. I'm assuming you and Hermione may want to talk about things."

"Alright," was all Anica said, before George shut the door behind him and Draco was no longer in sight. Trembling as she heard George utter the same silencing spell that Charlie spoke right before… well before he did that _thing _to her, she took a step back.

Noticing the trembling step that Anica took away from him, Fred let out a loud roaring sound, and grabbed onto the pink hairbrush, before tossing it across the room. His hair looked as if he had been tugging at it for days. George looked no better. Walking at a slow pace, he held up both his hands for Anica to see his every motion. He held both his, and his twin's wands high up into the air; allowing her to see that he was going to hurt her. Gently placing them down onto the dresser, he watched the realization slowly sink into Anica. Letting out a soft sigh, she dropped all her weight onto the floor of her room. It's been two weeks, and she still refused to touch her bed. Hence the reason she made Kreacher bring her fresh blankets and pillows.

"He told you," it came out in a statement, more than a question. She already knew the answer.

Whipping his head towards the weakened voice, Fred had to remind himself to just breathe in order to remain calm. "Why didn't _you_ tell us?"

"I just wanted to pretend it never happened," she admitted.

George watched her closely. He and Fred stayed away from her, not wanting to get too close. They didn't want her to think they wanted to hurt her. "By jumping every time he gets near you, and fidgeting when any of us touch you as simply as hugging?"

Nodding her head, she sighed once more. Pulling her knees up to her chest, Anica stared George in his eyes. "I thought I could beat it again. But I was wrong. I was weak this time. It was hard to forget about it without Draco by my side."

"Draco?" Fred tilted his head to the side now. "What do you mean again? Does Draco know what happened? Has Charlie done this to you before?"

"No," she shook her head. "And I don't want Draco to know. Please, I'll tell you guys everything. But no one can know about Charlie, especially not Draco."

"What's everything Anica?" George asked her.

"I was raped," staring down at the ground now, she felt the tears soak through her pants. "I was only thirteen years old at the time. It was a year after I met Blaise."

There were no sounds for a long time. Anica remained still, continuing to stare at the ground. Fred stared at George, and George stared at Fred. Fred's knees hit the ground first, and George followed. This was it, the part where they learn why she's as secretive as she is, and why Draco is so protective over her. This is where they hear secrets that they aren't sure they really want to know. After what felt like long silent filled hours, Anica released her knees. Wiping her tears away, she finally looked back up. Fred and George were still staring at the other.

"You guys were still in school at the time," not bothering to give them time to speak or comprehend everything, she continued. They were the first people to ever know this besides Draco. Not even Blaise knew the truth. "I went to this muggle school in London, and there were these two boys. Did you hear the story of how Draco and I met?"

It was George who found his voice first. "Two older boys were kicking you when Draco ran in," he nodded his head, turning to look at her finally.

"William Burgess and Zachariah Bane," she nodded her head. "Three years older than me. They were in the eleventh grade at that time, and I was in the eighth. We went to the same school though. I developed earlier than most girls, and seemed to attract a lot of attention from males everywhere. Draco and Blaise even noticed that I was growing up. They were reluctant to take me to Diagon Alley with them for a while, scared that I would attract some unwanted attention when I wasn't supposed to be noticed in the first place. William and Zachariah both still held a grudge over me because of what happened with Draco when I was seven, and they were ten. So of course, they picked on me in school. I was walking around that night," she continued on. "It was ten out, and like always, I hated being home at night. So like always, I walked to the park."

"At ten at night?" Fred seemed to have finally found his voice as well, this time. "On your own? At thirteen?"

Anica nodded her head, and continued on. "I just reached the park when I saw them there, the two of them. They had bottles of whisky in their hands, and were smoking. I could tell from the scent that it wasn't cigarettes though. It was a muggle drug called weed. I tried to turn around before they would notice me, but with my luck I stepped on a branch and they heard me. It was William who called my name. Zachariah looked scared, searching the area, looking for Draco. They knew that he didn't live in the town, but they would often see him walking around with me some nights, and even some days. They weren't sure when he would be around, and it looked like only Zachariah had that much common sense left in him. I told them I wanted to just go home, that I wouldn't tell anyone they were drinking or doing drugs. Zachariah wanted to let me go; telling William that hurting me wouldn't get them anywhere. As he held onto his friend, he told me to run, but-"

They saw her hesitation. They saw the fear in her eyes as her mind forced her to relive that night. Watching her, they gave her the time she needed to pause. "You don't have to tell us," Fred ended up saying. "We don't need to know this."

"No-" she shook her head, forcing herself to get over it. "I need to tell you. I need to tell someone other than just Draco. Maybe… maybe this will help me face Charlie again – if someone else knows the truth."

George nodded his head, "Take your time, love. We won't rush you."

"I turned to leave. I wanted to run out of there, but William pushed Zachariah onto the ground, and he grabbed onto me," shaking her head as she heard her own screams from that night, Anica wiped away tears that weren't even falling. Her lips were trembling, and she was paler than Draco was during his sixth year at Hogwarts. "He ripped my shirt off first. Then my bra," her body was trembling now. "I-I-I have these – these burns," her eyes met Fred's, and she saw his tears. They looked so odd against his freckled cheeks. "From my foster mum. She was always envious of me, always jealous that I was more beautiful than her. She burned me."

"Where?" the sick twisting feeling in his stomach already told him the answer, but for some reason Fred needed her to say it.

"My chest," her voice was low; nothing more than a hushed whisper. "Margo would often strip me naked and beat me with a belt, leaving large indentions from the buckle across my bare bottom. Then she would-" they noticed her hands fly to her chest, covering it with shame, and mixed fear. "She would hold her cigarettes to my chest, peeling them out on me. I have scars and burns on my breasts. I've had them from when I was only eleven."

"Eleven?" George choked out.

"Like I said," she slowly nodded her head, "I developed early."

"Then what happened?" asked Fred, not wanting to hear anymore, but at the same time wanting to know everything. If he was going to kill his own brother, he wanted to make sure he knew everything wrong that happened to the girl he already considered a sister. "At the park? With William and Zachariah?"

"Zachariah stopped trying to stop William," she spoke again. Her eyes were glossed with the haze of a past she didn't want to remember. "His eyes were stuck on my chest. Thirteen years old, and a B cup with burns all over it," her eyes lowered to the ground now. "William was still holding onto my hair, and I was still screaming out for help. But no one could hear me. No one came to help me," she thought back to the night with Charlie, and pulled her knees up to her chest once more; starting to slowly rock her body. "They laughed at me, they told me how hideous I was, and laughing at how no one would ever want to touch me. While William was holding me, Zachariah came up to me. He slapped my face until I stopped screaming. Putting my shirt back over my chest, they said that I was pretty enough if they didn't have to see all of me. They covered my face as well. I was a virgin until that night. William held me down, while Zachariah went first. I was in so much pain, and he was rough with me. They continued telling me how disgusting I was, and how I was lucky that anyone would even want to touch me in such a way. Then William was next. I was bleeding, and raw, but he didn't care. Zachariah held me down so hard, that his fingers bruised my wrists. They continued it. They each took five turns with me, then left me there on my own. I had to crawl home that night."

Fred couldn't control himself anymore. He moved over to the girl, and pulled her into his arms. At first he could feel Anica hesitate against him, scared of his touch, but he wouldn't pull away from her. He wouldn't release her. He needed her to know that he was there for her. When she finally relaxed into his arms, he whispered into her hair, "I'll kill them for you Anica. I'll kill all of them."

"Draco drove them insane," she shook her head, brushing her tears against his t-shirt covered chest. "I was still covered in blood; mangled in tears and dirt when I owled him. Lying beneath my bed, I waited for him that night. It took only thirty seven minutes and fourteen seconds for him to arrive. He found me hiding under my bed, and he took me in his arms that night. I couldn't move my body, so he used his wand to levitate me to the shower. It was Draco who bathed me that night. I couldn't even talk. I was in too much of a shock to do anything really. He stayed with me through the night-"

"Wait-" George listened to her, tears in his eyes, but her words caught his attention. "He used his wand? He was still only thirteen at the time, and snuck out of Hogwarts to be with you. He would've gotten caught, and an official witch or wizard from the Ministry would've arrived to arrest him if he used his wand."

"Lucius gave Draco an illegal wand for his fifth birthday," Anica shook her head. "When Draco got his registered wand for Hogwarts, he left his illegal wand with me. He felt it would be the safest spot for it, so he wouldn't get caught with it. It was that wand that he always used when he came to visit me."

"Gotta hand it to the Malfoys," Fred shook his head. And as dark as this situation was, a soft chuckle was still managed to be heard from him, "Sometimes they do have the most brilliant ideas."

"After washing my hair and scrubbing my body down, Draco gave me a potion. He said that it prevented diseases and pregnancy. It was then when everything sunk in. I broke down in the tub, and just cried. Draco held me through it all. I was sitting in a bathtub, naked, and covered in soap, and he just held onto me as if it were the most natural thing in the world that night. I told him everything: of how I was walking late that night when I was attacked, and unlike with you guys, I didn't spare him the imagery. I told him detail for detail of my attack. He sat there, holding me in his arms, listening to me. After two hours, he dried me off, and dressed me in his sweats, and one of his jumpers that he left at my house over the summer holidays. We laid under the bed that night. He transfigured my lamp into a pillow for himself, while I laid against him, and he transfigured a couple more things to make into sheets and a blanket for us. He sang me to sleep that night, and when I woke up he had blood on him, and I heard the sirens up at the park. Somewhere through the night when I was sleeping, Draco left me for a while. He snuck out and hunted down William and Zachariah. He won't tell me everything he did to them, but I know he tortured them. And when the cops found them, they were bleeding at the park; talking of being set on fire, and something about a dragon. Until this very day, they're in the home for mental patients. No one knows the truth of what really happened that night. Only Draco, and them."

George watched as Anica continued to rock against his twin. He wasn't stupid; he knew she omitted the details of her rape. But even with all the details being left out, he still saw a horrible picture of it all – two sixteen year old boys raping a thirteen year old girl, stealing her virginity, being rough with her, and taking five turns each. He didn't know what Draco did, but he didn't think it was enough. The boys were both still living which meant that Draco didn't torture them enough. His twin's eyes met his, and they both nodded their heads at the other. There was more to it. As horrible as that one night was, it wasn't enough to damage Anica to the point where what Charlie did to her would have her frozen with her own father. It happened again, and it was the second time that must have really got to her.

"I was fourteen," whispered the tired voice after ten minutes of tear filled silences. "I was still having a hard time going near any males, and I made Draco swear not to tell Blaise what happened to me. I trusted him, but I was ashamed of the truth. I just wanted to pretend none of it happened. Only Draco and I knew. I was fourteen when I met this boy in my class; Toby Wellington. He was handsome, and all the girls wanted him. Well one day he asked me out. I was ecstatic, until after the date. We were snogging, and everything was going great until he took off my shirt. He looked down at my chest, and jumped up with a sneer. Apparently I'm hot, but not enough for him to touch me now that he knows I'm scarred. He told everyone in school about how much of a freak I really am. Soon though, the boys were all lining up for me. He came back to me to after a while. Do you guys know why they were all lining up to shag me?"

Fred and George both shook their heads, "No."

"They realized that they can keep my shirt on," she scoffed. "My face is fun enough for them to look at, and they can just keep my shirt on while we shag. I could still hear William and Zachariah's words in the back of my mind; telling me how no one would ever want to touch me when they see how ugly I really am. I could hear Margo laughing as she disfigured me, and I gave in to them. I liked how they still thought of me as being attractive enough to want to shag."

"But it made you feel worse about yourself," Fred realized. "That no matter how much of them would shag you, you were still alone."

"Once they were done, they would just get up and leave," she nodded her head. "I was nothing more than a slag to them."

"And that was when Draco showed you how beautiful you really were," George gasped. It all made sense to him now. Draco and Anica had a bond so close that when he noticed how much these pricks were all making her feel like she wasn't wanted, he reminded her how beautiful she truly was. Draco was truly there for her when no one else was.

"Pathetic isn't it?" Anica lightly scoffed, nodding her head. Moving both her hands to her eyes, she pulled away from Fred. "Margo told me I would be nothing more than a streetwalker, and it seemed like everyone who knew me agreed with her. It was in the beginning of the school term, just this year. Draco tried his hardest to spend all of the summer with me, like he normally does, but it was difficult for him. He had already been branded as a Death Eater, and he almost killed Dumbledore. Times were hard, and he was being trapped at the manor. I hardly saw him at all during the summer, and now that school was back in session, I knew I wouldn't see much of him anymore either. I had a mental breakdown that night," lifting the sleeves from the shirt she stole from Draco; she showed them her flawless skin. "I was near death when he found me."

"Your wrists?" Fred began to slowly caress the smoothed skin. Turning his eyes up at her, he cocked an eyebrow. "Draco's hiding your scars isn't he?"

Anica nodded her head. "He came over that night because he was going through his own stress. He came to me so I could remind him that he was a good person, but instead he smelt the blood. He saw the blood pouring from beneath my bed, and he found me in my usual spot. He rushed over, and used as much spells as he could remember to save me. The blood stopped, and he gave me a potion that he just so happened to have on him; a blood replenisher. When he asked me why, I explained to him that I was hideous. That I was nothing more than a streetwalker, and that what everyone whispered about me was true. He knew of my one nights, and he knew of my self-consciousness, but he didn't know that I had been planning to take my own life," there was another secret about that night, one that wasn't hers to tell, but she had a feeling that Draco would be explaining to it to Hermione. "It was then when he held me in his arms."

"He made love to you to show you he loved every part of your body," describing what Draco and Anica did as shagging, just sounded so crude to George. They didn't shag, or have just a one-off. They made love, and they loved each other. They had a love that just didn't exist in the real world.

Anica nodded her head once more. "I'll spare the details for you guys, but yes. We moved up to the top part of my bed, and he slowly began to kiss every scar of mine," her fingers absentmindedly began to stroke where magic hid her attempts at death, "He took his time, and he admired each inch of my body. There was no shame in having Draco caress me in a passionate way. With all the times that we've showered, bathed, or changed each other in our lives, he was the only person I knew who would continuously look at my body. There was no disgust in his eyes, no flinching of his face. He knew how I felt used because all the other guys would leave once they got what they wanted. Draco knew how I've never had an orgasm in my life. To me, sex wasn't fun. Draco showed me that night, that it could be erotic and fun if you actually want it."

"Draco was your only orgasm, because he was the only one who didn't practically force your legs open," George was growling now. Murder set in his eyes; he began to agree with his twin's early statement. He would kill Charlie. Charlie deserved to die.

Continuing to stroke her wrists, Anica softly smiled. "And afterwards, he continued to hold me in his arms. We laughed about it, and there was no tension between us. It was something we both needed. I know it's pathetic, but in a sense we both needed to know that someone truly loved us. We were with someone we actually loved, and someone we trusted. We didn't love each other in a sense to continue it, but we loved each other enough to be mature about it. Draco showed me that there is somebody out there who won't abandon me, and someone who will love every part of me. And I showed him that just because he was a Death Eater; it didn't mean that he couldn't be kind. He could still be open with someone, and be loved in return. We were there for each other in every sense."

"A true bond," George nodded his head. He chuckled as he thought back to the Hogwarts version of Draco Malfoy. "Back in Hogwarts, I never once looked at Draco and thought to myself; _hey this bloke is really cool. He's got a soft heart, and sees the beauty in people_; I always thought he was just a wanker."

"It was his façade," Anica sadly agreed. "If he showed any emotions, he would've been killed. There are many sides to Draco that I was lucky enough to witness throughout my life. Without him, I would've been dead already."

"So why don't you tell him about Charlie?"

There it was again; the thickness that took over the room. Anica's heart slowed its pace as her eyes began to furrow. Her thoughts were mixed between Charlie, and between her secret – the secret that Draco doesn't know, the secret that would change everything. The secret that would cause everyone to scream, shout, cry, get pissed, and just look upon all of this in confusion, the secret that she had to face if she ever wanted to look at Charlie again. The secret she had to confess if she wanted a chance at a normal relationship with her father. Although she forgot about this, she had a feeling that it had something to do with why she hardly stayed around Sirius. It was a huge part of why she didn't spend all of her time rebuilding a relationship with him. Although her mind blocked out this one memory from her there was a deep part inside of her, reminding her that she couldn't get close to anyone in general. Especially people she should normally be trusting towards.

"I was raped again," she spoke so quickly, that she didn't even realize she said it until Fred and George were staring at her with open mouths. "Draco doesn't even know."

"Another secret that you kept from him?" she couldn't determine if it was bitterness or pity that leaked from Fred's voice, but she didn't blame him either way.

"And he never will."

"Then why tell us?"

"Because it's killing me inside," she admitted. "My mind worked so hard to keep it blocked away, that I didn't even remember about it until today. It wasn't until I thought to myself that Charlie is the first secret I've hid from Draco, that I remembered this one attack. I have to tell someone or it's going to kill me. It's going to continue to eat away at me until there's nothing left of me but an open shell."

"Then tell us," George nodded his head in a brotherly tone. "What happened?"

Taking in a deep breath, she tried to think of how to say it. "Margo and Edward were beating me again. Like always," she didn't realize her eyes were rolling as her voice showed her annoyance, "Again! Nothing new there," she shook her head. "Anyway, I had this boyfriend. Draco knew about him, but he didn't know all of it. I didn't know all of it either, which is why Draco didn't know the whole truth. See, when I met him he was this sweet boy, older than me by only three months. We started dating a month after that night with Draco and I, and he was the first boy who didn't pressure me into doing anything with him. He always seemed a little bored with me though. And I hardly saw him because he went to a different school from me. He would usually come around during the weekends or at nights."

"What was his name?" Fred and George both wanted the name of the muggle they would murder.

"He told me his name was David Pierce," they heard the snigger in her throat at his name. "Over Christmas break, Draco came to visit me. He knew of how I had a muggle boyfriend so our story was that Draco was a boy from the orphanage who came around once in a while to check on me. When Draco introduced himself, David seemed a little… well he seemed a bit excited about it. Then when Draco gave him the whole 'hurt my sister and I'll find you then kill you painfully' speech, David had wandering eyes with girls walking around us. Draco immediately hated him, but I stayed with him."

"You should always trust your brother's opinion," Fred teased in a light manner. "If Draco hates the bloke, stay away from him."

"I know that now," she chuckled. Then her eyes darkened again. "We were at the theater one night – a muggle place where everyone gathers to watch a movie on a large projector screen – and this guy accidentally stepped on his foot. I heard David utter; _filthy bloody muggles,_" the twins gasped, and she nodded her head. "I would sleep at Blaise's occasionally, on nights when I refused to stay at home, and I already knew how I had to stay locked in Blaise's bedroom. Apparently when I was sleeping, one of their friends walked into the room. He saw me then left before I could wake up. He wanted to know who I was, and why I was there, and why Blaise was hiding me. He found me in the muggle world, and drank the _polyjuice_ potion to hide who he really was."

"Who was he?"

She shook her head, telling them that she wouldn't answer that question just yet. "After a while when I didn't mention anything about knowing a Blaise Zabini, he started thinking that maybe he got it all wrong; that I wasn't the girl from his friend's bedroom. But then Christmas break happened, and I introduced him to Draco. He was shocked to learn that I was Draco's friend instead, but nonetheless excited about all of it."

"Who was he?"

"Once he learned that a Malfoy was hiding a sibling relationship with a muggle, he planned on taking me to Malfoy Manor, and delivering me to Voldemort, but then he just couldn't; something about growing too attached to me. As much as he wanted to see Draco murdered, and Blaise tortured, he didn't want to see me being murdered either."

"Who was he?"

"Then that night at the movies happened, and I heard him. He saw the fear in my eyes, and he knew he had been caught. Grabbing me by my wrists, he apparated me to _Knockturn Alley, _and took me to a room above one of the shops. It was there that he told me the truth of how he first spotted me, and wanted to learn who I was. He told me to run away with him; that he loved me, and we could be together. He said that we would have to run away before Voldemort caught us, but that he knew Harry would win the war, and we could return once it was over. I told him I wanted Draco. He refused to let me see Draco, and I told him Draco would understand. Draco wrote to me about him in some of his letters, and Blaise did too. I told him that Draco, and even Blaise would help us to escape. And maybe we could take them both with us."

"You loved him to the point that you were willing to escape with him?"

"No."

"Then why did you say that?"

"Because once I learned his true name, and I heard how he planned to get Draco killed, I knew I had to get away from him. I knew that if he called to Draco, I would be safe."

"Who was he?"

"He attacked me," shuddering as she thought back to Charlie's words to her the night of his attack, she began crying again. "He called me a whore, saying that I was shagging both Draco and Blaise," the twins growled in unison as they remembered their brother's words to her as well, "He used his wand, and strapped me down to the bed. He raped me again and again. I was there for three days before he returned and released me. He was bloodied, and told me that the golden trio had been caught, and Draco was being tortured. He apologized for hurting me like that, and told me to stay in my flat."

"He – he warned you?"

She nodded her head as she thought back to those days being strapped down to the bed. It was funny how he didn't mind her burns, and took the time to gently tease them with his mouth. "He said that Draco was being tortured because he lied to his aunt and said he didn't know it was Harry. He apparated me home, and apologized to me again."

"Who was he?"

"He returned that night. He was pale, and shaking. The golden trio had escaped, and Draco was still alive. He raped me again. I pleaded with him to stop, but he wouldn't listen. After he was finished, he apologized once more then left again. I got an owl from Draco once I was out of the shower. The war had begun."

"Who was he?"

Lifting her gaze to match with Fred's, Anica thought back to all those nights. She met him in October, and learned the truth about him in May. It's been only two months since she wasn't with him, and for these past two months she forgot all about him completely. It seemed odd to her that she was able to move so quickly onto Charlie, only to be hurt by him as well. Maybe… maybe she was just prone to being abused all her life. "Theodore Nott."

**A/N: I know. Theo came out of nowhere, but he has a main part to do with Charlie and Anica. Sorry if this chapter was too upsetting for some of you or not what you were expecting at all, but as I said, I've had an idea of how this was going to play out for a while now. Everything will fall into place soon enough, and as I also said before, I'm a sucker for happy endings so I promise this does get better over time(: as for the Draco/Anica relationship does it make sense to you now? Still cute though right?**

**And for **_**MaygenLynn**_**, I was never intending on making her actually talk to Charlie himself, because the twins also have a main part to do with her, but Charlie is about to find out everything. And oh, don't worry! I know exactly what you mean about having the rape victim fall in love about 2-3 chapters after being raped, and those always annoy me as well(: they will have their happy ending, but it won't be for a while. Anica still has a lot of inner demons to overcome. And as for her and Sirius, now that she is able to admit what happened with Theo, you'll be seeing a lot more of them as well(: thank you for your comments, I'm glad you like my story. And I hope you continue to like it as it continues on(:**


	13. No Chains To Unlock

**A/N: For those of you that looked for **_**The Dragons Tale**_**, I'm sorry I never posted it. I wrote most of it down, but then I got sidetracked. I got caught up in my other stories, and new one that I'm addicted to. And now I'm sick, like almost being admitted to the ER sick :/ but once I feel better, I'm going to finish it.**

No Chains To Unlock

Anica was lightly snoring beneath her bed by the time the twins left her. Both nodding their heads at each other, they snuck out of her room. Being careful not to make any sounds, they didn't speak to each other at all. Tears stained their cheeks as they each remembered the horrific story they just heard. So many images ran through both their minds. Understanding the relationship between Draco and Anica, they began to wonder what it meant to trust someone so much that you would give them your body with no regrets. It wasn't as if Draco took advantage of her in a weakened state, and made his move on her. He was scared, thinking he would lose her forever. He did the sanest thing he could think of in his mind. He showed her he loved her in every way. The way they looked at each other didn't show some sort of hidden passion that they each secretly harbored towards the other. They loved each other, and had a bond that no one could ever understand, but they weren't in love with each other. It made sense now.

"Come to kill me?" Charlie asked from the floor of his room. He lifted his head when he saw his twin brothers barge into his room. He saw the tears in their eyes, and became confused. He already told them everything that he did to Anica. So why were they crying this much about it?

"We should," Fred didn't bother to hide his hatred from his brother. The brother he once wanted to be. Charlie was the cool brother; he worked with dragons after all. He had tattoos, and he wasn't frightened of their mum. But now he was no better than Theodore Nott.

Unable to even look at his brother, George stared at the ground instead. "Anica was raped."

"I thought we established that," Charlie snorted.

Taking in the firewhiskey bottle that his brother was cradling, Fred noticed how it looked as if he had been turned into a zombie as much as Anica had these past days. "When she was thirteen," that caught Charlie's attention. Charlie's head snapped up, and he stared at Fred, waiting for him to continue. "She was walking around one night, and these two boys from her school found her. She was only thirteen years old, and they stole her virginity from her. They each took five turns with her, leaving her on her own. She had to crawl back to her home."

"She owled Draco, and he snuck out of Hogwarts that night to comfort her," George still refused to look at Charlie, scared that he would murder him for adding more pain to the already broken girl. "Blaise doesn't even know about the rape. They were the only two to ever know about it. Until now. We're telling you, and Draco's explaining all of it to Hermione. He tortured the two blokes to the point that they're now living in a muggle asylum."

Fred saw his brother open his mouth to say something, but he stopped him. "Her foster mum burned her chest, scarring her pretty badly. The two blokes who raped her mocked her body and told her she was lucky they would even be willing to touch her."

"They were both sixteen."

"Anica became frightened of any male figure after that night; aside from Draco of course… and Blaise. It wasn't until she was fourteen that she finally managed to move on from it. This bloke in her school asked her out on a date. Things got heavy, and he saw her burns. Disgusted with what he saw, he left her alone and told the whole school."

"The blokes in her school thought of her as a slag because of what he said, and they soon all decided they could shag her, as long as she kept her shirt on," there was a sour taste in his mouth as George spoke, but Charlie needed to know the truth. He needed to know how damaged Anica already was before he even hurt her. "Her foster mum kept reminding her of how much of a slag she truly is, and soon she just fell into it. She allowed the blokes in her school to have their way with her."

"It was the beginning of the year when she decided she had enough of it," refusing to take his eyes off of his brother, Fred saw the tears falling from Charlie's eyes. Charlie's stare never left him either. "She tried to kill herself. Draco was stressing out about the Death Eaters taking over Hogwarts, and went to her to talk about it. He found her nearly dead. That was the night they made love. The reason he was her only orgasm was because he was the only person who didn't force sex out of her. He was the only person who loved her enough to take his time with her, and appreciate her with her shirt off. He took his time admiring her body, and gently kissed each one of her burns and scars."

Turning around to leave the room, George stopped by the door, "We're only telling you this because you need to know. Anica didn't shag Draco because she's a slag. He made love to her to prove to her that she's not."

"She was raped again-"

"Fred," George hissed, turning to his twin. "Don't… Draco doesn't even know that part."

"Well it's not the only rape she's keeping hidden from him," Fred hissed back. Turning his glare back to Charlie who looked as if he were about to be sick, he told him, "It was the week of the war. So it's been only two months since she's been raped. It was by somebody she trusted, somebody she loved. She was happy with you Charlie. When she met you, her mind blanked out that other rape. But then you went along and proved yourself no better than him."

Pulling at his hair, Charlie threw the bottle across the room until it shattered against the wall. "Fuck!"

The morning after the twins and Hermione learned the truth, Hermione confronted Anica about everything. She didn't understand any of it. How could the young girl still be so strong? She didn't know about Theodore Nott or about Charlie, but from what she did know… she cried for the girl. Thanking Anica for allowing Draco to tell her everything, she grabbed onto her and cried for her. A weight had been lifted, and she knew now the relationship that her boyfriend and his best friend shared. They had a bond deeper than she had with Harry or Ron. She understood now why Blaise didn't feel like a third wheel among the pair. It was odd really. Whereas Blaise should feel like a third wheel, he didn't, and she understood it now. She felt the same way. She trusted them enough to know that Anica would never steal Draco away from her, just as much as she knew Draco would never leave her for Anica. It was a complicated relationship, but Hermione felt blessed to be a part of it all. They accepted her into their little relationship, and she could only be thankful to be in it.

"You alright there, love?"

Keeping her legs curled beneath her on the couch, Anica looked up. "Yeah."

Something was going on, and Sirius wanted to get to the bottom of all of it. Ever since the day the kids all played Quidditch everyone's been walking on eggshells. And it seemed as if things only intensified since Harry's birthday. The twins don't even come over anymore, and Hermione is always wiping away tears that he didn't understand. And now Charlie refused to leave his room, making Kreacher take his meals up to him. Everything was tense, and he didn't understand any of it. "What are you reading?" he asked.

"It's a book filled with short stories," she explained, flipping the book so he could see the white cover with the shadowy silhouetted title on it. "The story I'm reading about right now is titled Soldiers of Spiritos, it's a short little twenty-three paged story."

Accepting the book from Anica, Sirius leaned back against the couch. Skimming through the pages, he found a highlighted phrase, and read it aloud, "She was too good at this part. Imagining her own defeats, dismissing possibilities without considering them."

"That's from the second story in there," she smiled softly, reaching for the book back, "That one's called Wilderness."

"Oh," sighing, Sirius took in his daughter's appearance. He may not have any clue when it comes to being a father, but he does know when something's wrong. Her hair was tied back into a frizzy looking French braid, while she wore loose fitted long blue jeans, and an oversized t-shirt. The t-shirt was grey with black designs on it that he couldn't make out. "So I was thinking," he announced when he saw her curl up to her book once more, "It's been nearly three months since you found out you're my daughter."

Looking up from her book, Anica smiled. That's true. Two weeks after the war, and just one week since she found the large black dog that one night in the rain, the truth came out. A month and half passed since then, and in some ways she was glad. She finally had her real family, and no longer had to put up with the foster twats she got stuck with. "I know, Dad."

He tried to search her face, and he was confused. He could see the happiness in her eyes, but he also found sorrow. It was like she was trying to fight an inner battle with herself about something he didn't understand. "And I was thinking," that seemed to catch her full attention. Watching as Anica shut the book, then uncurled her legs, he scratched the back of his neck. "Why don't I lift the binding spell that I placed on you when I gave you up to the orphanage, and take you to go get your wand? Your birthday is coming up in only three weeks."

"I don't want my magic," Anica shook her head, climbing to her feet. "I've went seventeen years without using it, and I don't want to start using it now. I've seen what people with wands can do, and I grew up around it. Having magic is something that I've just never found myself wanting."

He saw her hesitation, but he also noticed she stood up. "Well what do you want for your birthday then?" he asked her. He didn't understand why she didn't want her magic back, or a wand, and made a mental note to question Draco about it later. "You can have anything in the world," he beamed.

_My memories to be erased_, she sighed. Then seeing the worry in her father's eyes, she forced out a grin. "Oh, I don't know, Dad. I've never been good with receiving gifts. I prefer to just buy them for other people. I don't like anything really."

"Well what does Draco or Blaise usually get you then?" he asked, "I'm sure they've brought you things from the wizarding world before, right?"

Laughing, Anica thought back to all her old birthdays. "Yeah. One year, Blaise brought me this set of wizarding robes that changes colors according to my mood. I was fourteen that time, and for some reason they stayed stuck on orange and yellow. And when we were ten, Draco brought me a glass set wizard's chest. Though as we grew older, it's mostly jewels or dresses now."

"They brought you jewels?"

"Mhmm," she nodded her head, relieved to finally be able to smile after all this time. "Blaise normally buys me a pair of earrings, whereas Draco tends to buy me lockets. I keep them all in an enchanted jewelry box that Blaise brought me for Christmas one year. I'm the only person who can open it. And_ polyjuice_ can't even trick it."

Thinking about meeting up with Draco and Blaise to find out what types of jewelry his daughter likes, Sirius cocked an eyebrow. "And what kind of dresses?"

"Well Draco and I have always had this tradition," taking her seat back on the couch, she grinned again. But this time it was a real grin. The excitement took over her face. "Draco and I met when we were seven, right?"

Sirius nodded his head, "As I've heard."

"Well he didn't exactly tell me he was a wizard until nearly a year later. Ten months to be exact. And he told me on my eighth birthday. We made plans to meet up at the park like we do every night, but this time it was different. This time, he brought a picnic basket with him. I was dressed in my usual pajamas, while he wore this adorable little black suit thing. He pulled out his wand again, and I thought back to the first night that I met him…"

_The air was nice and warm out. It wasn't sticky, and it wasn't cold. It was perfect. Tiny silver spikes sat up on Draco's head while he shook his head at the girl in front of him. Sitting on the large emerald colored comforter that he brought for them to sit on, she was dressed in long pink pajama pants, and a white nightgown that reached her knees. Her hair was tied back into two braids, and she stared at his dress suit in amazement. Pulling out his wand, he saw her eyes widen as she thought back to the night she first met him. Tonight was special. Not only was it her birthday, but tonight is the night he tells her the truth about himself._

_ "Happy birthday Anica!"_

_ "Thanks, Draco," she beamed ecstatically, "What is that in your hand?"_

_ "I have a secret," he announced, still standing in front of her. "I'm a wizard, Anica."_

_ "You're a what?"_

_ "A wizard," he beamed proudly. "See, this is my wand. But nobody can know I have it, alright. Or else my father and I will both get into a lot of trouble." _

_ Nodding her head, the eight year old girl was quick to believe him. She didn't question it or call him a liar. He hadn't lied to her yet, so why would he lie to her right now? "That's so cool," she said. "Now Draco, why are you dressed like that?"_

_ "On my mum's birthday, my father gets all dressed up, and so does my mum. My mum looks really pretty in her gown, and my father looks handsome in his suit and his own wizard dress gown. Then he takes her out to eat a special dinner while I stay at home with the house-elves. So I decided to make our own birthday tradition for you."_

_ "For me?"_

_ "Yep," nodding his head, he held out his hand to her. "Stand up, Anica."_

_ Giggling as Draco helped her to stand, she saw him point his wand at her. "Draco, what are you doing now?"_

_ "Well we can't have a special dinner if you're dressed to sleep," he rolled his eyes. "Now just hold still. I think I have the spell right," muttering an incantation that he's heard his mum use before, his eyes grew wide while he watched the pants disappear altogether, and the nightgown turn into an ankle length light pink silk gown. The straps were thin, and it flowed all the way to her ankles. Soon her rubber slippers were replaced with dainty pink ballerina shoes, and her hair was tied up into a bun, with curls falling over her face. "Whoa."_

_ Gasping as she looked down at herself, Anica jumped onto Draco, "Draco, I'm pretty now. Thank you. This is the best birthday I ever had."_

_ Laughing, Draco shook his head. "Well it isn't over yet silly. We still have to eat our special dinner. I had the house-elves make something for us."_

_ "House-elves?"_

_ Sitting on the comforter, the two children began to laugh as Draco explained all about the wizarding world to Anica. Dressed up as if they were going to a ball, they sat there on a comforter in the middle of a park at eleven at night. They learned already that nobody really comes to the park this late at night, so they didn't have to worry about anyone coming to interrupt them. Anica was amazed at how much food the tiny little picnic basket held inside of it, and laughed when she saw Draco pulling out her favorite foods. There were burgers with chips, potato salad, and pudding. Then he pulled out bottles of an orange drink; calling them Pumpkin Juice. _

_ "Mum told me that when Father takes her out for her special dinners he buys her, her favorite foods. I know you like to eat these, so I asked my house-elf to make them for you. He was confused a bit because Malfoys shouldn't know about muggle foods, but he did it anyway."_

_ Taking a spoonful of pudding, Anica's eyes shut. "Oh Draco, this tastes so good. Thank you."_

_ "Oh," he laughed again, reaching into the picnic basket once more, and pulling out a pink wrapped box. "I asked my mum to help me wrap this up for you. She thinks that it's for a girl in the wizarding world. I hope you like it."_

_ "You mean you got me a present too?" her eyes were wide with excitement; excitement and guilt. On his birthday, she made him a card covered in glitter and macaroni shells, and brought him a baseball with money she saved up from cleaning the neighbor's yards. "You didn't have to. You already made me really pretty like a real princess, and you brought me my favorite foods."_

_ "But I wanted to," he grinned. "Just open it Anica. I hope you like it. I couldn't go shopping in the muggle world on my own, so I brought it from Diagon Alley."_

_ Curious as to what kind of things they sell in wizarding stores, Anica quickly opened it up. Reaching her hand into the box, she pulled out a pink colored charm bracelet. "This is pretty," she said, holding it between her fingers._

_ "Mum told me that girls like jewelry," he grinned proudly. "And she said that they really love charm bracelets. I only put one charm on it though because she said the best part is adding a charm to it. Do you like it?"_

_ Admiring the pink diamond wand that dangled from the bracelet, she nodded her head. "I love this Draco. Thank you."_

_ "And I brought you-"_

_ "You mean there's more?" she gasped, automatically holding her hand out for Draco to clasp the bracelet onto her wrist. _

_ Laughing as he snapped the bracelet into its place, Draco grabbed a bag from the basket, "I know you Anica, and I know you'll love this one more than the bracelet. I only got that one for you because my mum is a girl, and she told me all girls like jewelry."_

_ "What is it?" she asked, digging through the bag._

_ "Chocolate Frogs."_

"And ever since then, every year on my birthday we sneak out to that park. Draco brings the same emerald comforter, and arrives in a suit while I wear my pajamas. He transfigures it into a gown, and we sit down and eat. As we grew older though, the meals began to change with our age, but we still have pudding. I love wizard's pudding better than muggle pudding. And every year he gives me another charm to add to my bracelet. And the bloody prat always has to make it in diamonds," laughing as she explained the tradition to her father, she saw the smile in his eyes. "After I met Blaise, he never came with us at night. But the first weekend day after my birthday, he would come with Draco and we would all just hang out. I was fourteen when they started buying me my own dress gowns. Some are simple day dresses, and others look fit enough for a princess."

"And the ones from your birthday?" Sirius asked her, "The ones that Draco transfigured. What happened to those ones?"

"I still have them," she shrugged her shoulders. "Draco said he's never seen a transfiguration spell last so long, but I still have the very same dress that Draco transfigured for me that one night."

"Well, all that does is tell me that I can't buy you a charm bracelet or any charms, that I can't buy you a dress, that you won't be here the night of your birthday, and that I can't take you out for a birthday dinner," he sighed, scratching his hair, and frowning. "That still doesn't tell me what you want."

She heard it – his words. Smiling, she cocked her head as she stared at him. "You mean you're already planning on me sneaking out with Draco that night?"

"Well I can't just break a birthday tradition that you two have had going on for ten years now, can I?" he laughed at her. "Look love, I knew the arrangement when you agreed to accept me back as your father. Draco is a part of your life. And I'm not going to break you guys up just because I'm back in your life now."

Anica wanted to hug him, but she held back. She still had no proof that he wouldn't hurt her. Just because he's kind to her now, and he accepts her now, doesn't mean that he won't change. "I erm…" standing back up, she felt the heat take over her cheeks. "I'm gonna be late for work."

Just like that, Sirius watched as Anica turned off all her emotions. One minute she was laughing with him, and telling him about her birthday tradition with Draco, and the next minute she's running into the floo without looking back at him. One minute her eyes are sparkling, and she's excited about something. Then the next minute her eyes are blank, and she's avoiding him. Shaking his head, Sirius stayed seated on the couch pulling his daughter's book towards him. Daughters are too confusing, and extremely complicated. No wonder the Weasleys prefer having six sons with just one daughter. Shuddering as he imagined it being the opposite, and having six female Weasleys, and only one Weasley male, he opened the book up.

"Anica!" Blaise shouted from where he was levitating an array of boxes to the back of the storage room, "Can you see who just entered the store?"

Wiping her hands on the bottom of her shirt, she was already walking towards the door leading from the storage room to the store. "I got it Blaise," she shouted back for her friend, and boss, to hear her. Glad to be able to turn to her job to just clear her mind of everything, she saw the customer standing at the counter.

"I'm looking for Blaise Zabini."

Already gasping before he even had to turn around, Anica tried to hold onto something. There was nothing there for her to hold onto though. Releasing a frightened squeaking sound, she fell to the floor. Within seconds, concerned brown eyes were peering down at her. Such familiar brown eyes. "Theodore," she gasped, "What are you doing here?"

Running a hand through his spiky raven colored hair, the handsome looking Theodore Nott, reached out his hands to help her stand up. It looked as if she tried to mesh herself with the floor when he did though, so instead, he stepped back and held his hands up in defeat. "Hullo again, Anica."

Using her elbows to push herself up, Anica scrambled back to her feet. This was all happening too quickly for her liking, like some horrible clichéd type of movie. Up until last week, her mind had him completely erased from her memory. Up until two months ago, she didn't even know this is what he truly looked like. She's only seen his true features in those horrible moments when he had her tied to the bed, and when he returned to her house that one night. She shouldn't be able to recognize him so quickly. "What – what are you doing here?" she stammered.

Making sure to keep his distance, to show that he wasn't going to harm her in any way, Theo stared at her. Is this what he did to her? He hadn't seen her since the night of the war, scared that he would hurt her again, but he's wanted to. He's missed her terribly over the last two months, but he felt that as long as he kept his distance she could become fixed again. He hurt her in ways that he never meant to, and now she turned into a lifeless zombie. In the eight months that he dated her under his false identity, she had never seemed so fragile. "I'm looking for Blaise," he calmly told her, scared that if he spoke loudly, she would crumble like paper.

"He – He's in the b-back," she managed to say. She was confused. Why wasn't he sneering at her, or bringing up the past? Where was the part where he attacks her again, or uses his wand to silence her so that he can kidnap her once more?

Theo was just about to ask her how she's been when he saw his old friend emerge from the back. For a moment he expected Blaise to hex him or murder him, but when Blaise grinned at him, he looked over at Anica. He realized that she didn't tell them. "Theo, mate," Blaise laughed, pulling his old friend into a warm embrace. "How have you been? I haven't heard from you since the war."

"I'm doing good," Theo chuckled, still watching Anica. Hugging herself, she closely watched the scene in front of her. "I was hiding out for a while. Just needed to reevaluate my life, you know."

"Tell me about it," Blaise laughed again, moving towards Anica. He noticed the way she carefully watched Theo. Mistaking it for her fear of him from what she's heard about him in the letters from himself, and Draco, Blaise placed a hand on her shoulder. "Theo, mate, this is Anica. Anica, this is my mate Theo. He used to be in Slytherin with Draco and I."

Nodding her head, Anica refused to look away from Theo. "Theodore Nott, I remember."

"Anica is an old friend of ours," Blaise explained to Theo, "And she's also the daughter of Sirius Black."

Theo began to choke. He knew that she was an old friend of Draco's and Blaise's, that part had been established. He also knew that her last name was Black, but he didn't know that she was the daughter of Sirius Black. "Really?" was all he managed to say.

"I found out two weeks after the war," she nodded her head, still refusing to look away from him. There were moments when Anica felt strong, and as if she could face the truth. This was one of those moments. "I ran into my father."

"And she's been staying with him ever since," Blaise nodded his own head as well. Finally walking away from Anica, he moved behind the counter. "So what brings you here Theo?"

"I erm…" Theo began to scratch his hair. "I was actually hoping you could give me a job. Nowhere wants to hire an ex-Death Eater, and Draco and I never really got along as much as you and I did."

Anica snorted. That was an understatement. In all the letters that Draco wrote to her about Theodore Nott, he was always cursing the bloody git. They were friends, and they got along just fine, but there was something about him that Draco didn't trust. Theo proved himself to be untrustworthy when he pretended to be a muggle just so he could get Draco and Blaise killed along with their muggle best friend. It didn't prove his case any better when he kept Anica a prisoner for three days. Blaise and Draco always muttered about Theo, but in the end of it, they still considered him a friend. Anica knew they would both murder him without hesitation once she told them the truth, and that was the only reason she didn't tell Draco the truth about her muggle boyfriend David. She would lose him for real this time, and Azkaban isn't kind to murderers – no matter how good the cause.

"Well of course you can work here," Blaise's acceptance caused Anica to jerk her head in his direction, finally removing her eyes from Theo.

"What?" she asked him.

Nodding his head, Blaise felt as if he was actually doing a good deed. "You need the help Anica. The shop's been hectic these past weeks, and I can see you going crazy trying to run everything on your own."

"Oh," feeling nauseous all of a sudden, Theo took a step back. "You work here too?" he asked her.

When Blaise saw Anica only nod her head in response, he cocked an eyebrow. "Have you two met before?" he knew that it was impossible, because he and Draco kept a good job of keeping her separated from their wizarding friends, but the look in Anica's eyes, and the guilt that emanated from Theo made him curious.

Anica groaned. Blaise caught the look that Theo gave her. He would allow her to answer this. "No," she lied, rubbing her shoulders now. "I only know him from what you guys used to tell me."

He didn't believe them, but Blaise accepted it for now. "Alright," he nodded his head. "Theo, you can start tomorrow. I want you here at seven every morning, and the shop closes at five. Like Anica, you're going to work from opening to closing Monday through Saturday. We're closed on Sundays."

He looked at Anica, waiting for her answer or to see a response in her eyes. If she wanted him to leave, he would. But her eyes were blank. She was hiding all her emotions from him. Sighing, Theo turned to his friend. "Thanks Blaise."

**Disclaimer: the book that Anica is reading is called, ****Do Not Deny Me**** by **_**Jean Thompson, **_**it's an interesting book filled with short stories that really make you think about things.**


	14. Stop Kicking The Gnomes

**Hello again my loves! I was still sick last week, and unable to write anything. I had my brother post up the chapters that were already written out for my other stories, but seeing as how this chapter wasn't written out yet, he couldn't upload anything for me. I just wanted to say thank you to all of you who reviewed, favorited, alerted, and just straight up read this story. You all make my life complete(:**

Stop Kicking The Gnomes

Hearing the rumbling of their stomachs, the twins decided to shut down their shop and go out for lunch. It was Wednesday, and they both had grins on their faces. Wednesdays were when they met up with Anica for lunch. They both noticed that her mood was off for the past couple of days. It's been almost two weeks since they learned the truth of her past, and they still couldn't look at the brother they both once wanted to be the clone of. As much as they refused to go over to Grimmauld Place, they made it a point of stopping by the Quidditch shop to talk to Anica. The past four days though, their shop had been slammed, and they could see a long line forming outside of the Quidditch shop as well. It was only two weeks before everyone returned back to Hogwarts, and everyone decided to do their back-to-school shopping only now.

"Theo!" Anica shouted from behind the counter, scanning the crowd until she saw the familiar brown eyes peering across the shop at her. "I need two Ravenclaw colored uniforms," she shouted at him. "A fifth year, and a third year."

Nodding his head, Theo shouted back, "Got it!"

It's been four days of having to work with her, and Theo made sure to keep his distance. He could still the distrust in her eyes, and he didn't want to frighten her. He felt guilty for what he had done, and although it wasn't an excuse, he honestly thought he was going to be killed in that war. He didn't think he would have to live with his actions. Being this close to her again though was making him relive those memories with her. Not the painful memories where he tied her down to a bed in a rusted down motel, and had his way with her for days, but the good memories. The memories of when her kisses tasted like chocolate, of when her fingers linked in with his made him forget his life as Theodore Nott. He actually missed living as David Pierce. In the moments that he lived his life out as David Pierce, nothing else mattered in the world. Somewhere along in his façade, he fell in love with the orphan muggle he originally planned to have killed. Now as a punishment, he was being forced to work so closely to her, having to see the fear in her eyes every day. Fear caused by him. Fear directed at him. Fear because of him. Fear from him.

It was difficult to be so close to her, and know that he could never hold her in his arms again. But he would do it. He would prove to her that he was no longer the monster she now hated. He remembered seeing her scars the first night that he revealed himself to her, and he took his time slowly teasing them with his tongue while she screamed out beneath him. He loved her, and he wanted her to know that. He was so sure that he was going to die any day in that week, that he wanted to make sure she knew he loved every part of her. He loved her flaws and everything else in between. He loved every inch of her, and her scars only made her that much more beautiful. She had fought her own war, and she won. The scars were only proof of how strong she was, and proved to the world that she survived every shitty thing life had thrown her way. He loved her, and she feared him.

Fred and George entered the Quidditch shop and chuckled to themselves. It wasn't as busy as it had been earlier in the week, but there was still a hectic crowd. Scanning the store, their eyes both landed on the frustrated girl at the same time. She had life in her now; a fire that appeared only four days ago. Dressed in her usual odd colored tiny jean shorts, she had on a _Chudley Cannon_ jersey, which was tucked into the yellow shorts. It caused them both to smirk. An orange jersey with yellow shorts – only Anica would be able to pull something like that off. They noticed her hair was brushed again, and tied into two French braids; one over each shoulder. She was no longer sickly looking. There was something in her eyes; a look like she had something to prove to the world.

"Anica!" they both shouted.

Turning away from the customer who was now paying her, Anica glanced over at the door and smiled. Waving back at the twins who were now waving at her, she turned back to the customer. "Thank you for shopping at _Quality Quidditch Supplies_," she said, "Please come back soon."

"Anica," Theodore returned from the back of the store, holding two separate bags in his hands. "I found the uniforms. We need to put in another order though, there isn't that much left."

"Shit," muttering under her breath, Anica quickly turned back to the door. The twins were fuming, and she could have sworn she saw smoke coming from their ears. "Theo," she turned to him, "Do you think you can handle everything for now?" seeing his confusion, she pointed in the direction of the now raised wands, "I have to stop the twins from killing you."

"You mean they know?" nervously glancing between the twins who were now rushing towards them, and back at Anica, he nodded his head. "I got it."

"I'll be back as soon as possible," she tried to assure him.

Jumping over the counter top, Anica was confused by her own actions. She didn't understand why she was protecting Theo, but he seemed different now. She wasn't stupid enough to believe he wouldn't hurt her again, but she was growing stronger with him around. Wrapping a hand around an arm of each twin, she began to drag them out of the shop. It seemed like Theo grew in the two months that she had last seen him. And not in the sense that he was more muscular than David was, but in the sense that he seemed more mature. She noticed that he was more careful with her now than he had been before. When Blaise was around he was comfortable enough to try at a decent conversation with her, but when they were alone he kept his distance. She appreciated it, and it helped her to gain her strength back. What Theo did was worse than what Charlie did to her. If she could face Theo every day, and work this closely to him, then maybe there was a chance she would eventually stop throwing up every time Charlie entered the same room as her.

"What the bloody hell-" Fred.

"-is Nott doing-" George.

"-working with you!" they both shouted together once Anica pushed them into their own shop.

"He came to Blaise four days ago," she shyly admitted. Feeling like a child who had been caught sneaking a sweet they were forbidden to touch, Anica found herself staring at the ground. "Looking for a job. He didn't know that I was working there, or that I would even be living in the wizarding world. When Blaise explained to him that I was Sirius's daughter, he started choking."

"I'm going to kill him," Fred hissed.

"No," Anica shook her head. "I'm fine guys. Really! I'm fine."

"You cannot be fine Anica," George groaned, pinching his forehead. Visions of Nott burning on a stake were running through his mind. "The guy tied you to a bed, and brutally raped you for three days straight."

"Then returned to your own home, and did it again," Fred bitterly added in.

"He stays away from me," she tried to assure them, feeling a bit relieved that they cared about her enough to be this worried for her. "He keeps his distance, and he tries his hardest to ensure that we aren't left alone together. I promise guys, I'm fine. Besides, Blaise is in the shop every day with us. This is only the first time he isn't around, and that's only because he's at a Quidditch convention thing to bring in more supplies. He'll be back tomorrow."

Fred and George both watched her carefully. They were confident enough in thinking that they could tell when she was lying. So far it didn't seem as if she were. "You just got life in you," Fred told her, "I don't want you to become a zombie again because of Nott."

Anica laughed, causing the twins to quirk an eyebrow. They were confused. This was a real laugh that had the mental girl holding onto her belly. "Don't you guys get it?" she told them, wiping at the tears in her eyes. "Theo is the reason I'm better. It's been four days since he's been working with me, and it's only helped me to realize-"

"-that you can face your worse fears," George finished for her, realizing what was happening.

Fred understood it as well now. "You're getting stronger just by being alone with him every day."

"Exactly," she nodded her head. "So see, I truly am fine."

Entering the large back yard of Grimmauld Place, Draco folded his arms. It's been a while since he saw this scene. Now that he thought about it, the last time this happened was probably during the summer entering into his fifth year. Anica had been stressing out about boys, and he was stressing because Voldemort was alive, and no longer living as a creepy, deformed baby made of flesh. It was something that they started when they were still only eight years old. Every time they would become stressed, they would do this. Anica's foster mum had a basement filled with them, and once Draco brought Anica to his world, they would use his mum's real ones. It seemed like Anica found her father's ones this time.

"Ani," he shook his head, approaching the grunting girl. "Stop kicking the gnomes."

"The ugly little things just keep mocking me, Draco," she shook her head. Grunting as she put all of her force into her next kick, she grinned excitedly when the ugly little sponge looking thing shrieked while flying one hundred feet into the air. "I've missed doing this. I haven't done it since that time we broke Margo's car window when kicking her ugly little blue painted one."

"Muggle gnomes have always crept me out more than real gnomes," Draco shuddered, not wanting to think back of how eerie those lawn gnome things were. There was always some sort of sinister grin painted onto their wrinkly little face. What the hell were they thinking while guarding the lawns?

Smirking as she caused the next gnome to fly eighty feet into the air, Anica turned to Draco. "So what's up?"

"Nothing much," he shrugged his shoulders, placing his hands into his jean pockets now. "Your birthday's coming up."

Nodding her head, Anica continued to kick the gnomes. "I know. I told my dad about our tradition. He said something about asking you and Blaise what he should get for me."

Laughing, Draco nodded his own head. Making a mental note to talk to Sirius about gift ideas, he kicked a gnome that had been crawling its way towards him. "I told Hermione as well. Do you have any idea what we're going to do with everyone else before we go to the park?"

"Not yet. That's another thing Dad's going to talk to you and Blaise about."

Smiling as he heard his sister say the word 'Dad' without flinching or any hesitation, Draco kicked another gnome just for the fun of it. "So you and Sirius seem to be talking more."

"A little," she nodded her head. "In the beginning we caught up on everything that we missed over the years. Such as: favorite colors, foods, what we hate the most, what school was like, my jobs, my foster parents. He told me about the Order and about Azkaban. We compared stories about our friends, and how different our worlds are. It was all routine questions and answers. But now-"

"Now you guys are talking like a father and a daughter?" Draco asked when he noticed the way that Anica paused. Anica nodded her head, and he chuckled. "Now you guys are connecting. You're beginning to open up to him more, and he's starting to sit there and just listen, like a father should."

"Yeah," she nodded her head, still kicking the gnomes. "It's exactly like that."

They fell silent, and Draco stood there just watching her. Something was bothering Anica, and it annoyed him to every degree that he couldn't read what it was. She was purposely hiding whatever this was from him, and it was beginning to curl his insides. She was damaged, and he had no idea why. Over the week he noticed she became closer to the twins, and further apart from Charlie. He wasn't the only who noticed it either. Blaise was starting to act like a big brother, and was playing the nagging, over protective role while Harry continued to finger his _Secrecy Sensor_, and follow her around. Anica noticed it, which caused her to shell away even more.

He also noticed though, that the past four days had brought life into her. At first he thought it was because of Theo working with her. Blaise told him how there was something between the two, almost as if they already knew each other, but now he suspected differently. Now that he knew she was actually having real conversations with her father, he was curious. He knew that it was Charlie Weasley who turned her into a zombie. He had no idea how, but he knew that Charlie was the one to blame. But he had no idea who was bringing her back to life. Was it the Slytherin or was it her father? Searching her face, it was evident; Anica was in love, and she was also at peace with something. That was what confused him though. Could it be both revelations that brought the flames back into her eyes? Could she be at peace that she now has a real family who she trusts? And who the bloody hell was she in love with?

"Charlie hurt me," she said finally, breaking the silence and answering questions that she could see in Draco's face. "In a way that I don't know if I could forgive him for."

"You love him," Draco said.

Anica was silent. Continuing to kick at the gnomes – it seemed like they always came crawling back to be kicked some more – she thought of her answer. This was one of the many reasons on why she loved Draco. He understood that when she was silent she was thinking, and he knew not to interrupt her. "I think so," she admitted. "I know I did before. But those kinds of pain, Draco… that kind of pain you don't recover from."

"Do you want to?" he asked her. Most people would ask what Charlie did to her, in a situation like this. But he knew better, Anica never hid anything from him before. And if she's been hiding this secret for as long as she had, she would tell him everything eventually. It took her this long to tell him just this much, and he could wait longer for the rest. As long as she said what she needed to for the moment. "So you want to forgive him? Do you want to love him again?"

"It's like I miss him," she nodded her head. "He's right down the hall from me, but I can't see him ever again. Just the mere mention of his name makes me literally vomit. Right now, I'm nauseous just talking about him. I think I still love him. I feel like I want to, but I can't. I'm scared of him Draco. I'm scared of him hurting me again."

"Did he apologize?"

"Yeah."

"Not everyone is going to hurt you again after apologizing to you, love," he sadly shook his head. "There are people out there who mean it when they apologize to you. Sometimes the people that love us the most are the ones who hurt us."

"Theo hurt me once too," she said softly. Draco had to take a couple of steps closer just to hear her properly. "The same way that Charlie did, but worse. I think I can trust him now though."

"Theo?" now he had to question it. Blaise told him that it seemed like they knew each other, but Draco dismissed it because it was impossible. How could Theodore Nott know Anica Black? "Did you know Theo before he started to work with you?"

The tears in her eyes were enough to answer him, and she saw Draco sit on the grass. He was shaking his head, "But how? We made sure we hid you from everyone else when they would come to Blaise's," he looked up at her. The tears were unshed. They just sat there in her eyes, staring at him; unable to fall gracefully.

"It was a quick passing," she half-heartedly lied to him. "I didn't really know who Theo was, but the point is Draco… Theo hurt me more than Charlie. I love Charlie, or well I did, but I think I still do. And Theo, well if I can slowly start to trust Theo again, what does that mean for Charlie?"

Draco was scratching the back of his neck at this point. He was suddenly extremely uncomfortable. There was a lot that Anica was hiding from him. Her replies had holes in them, and he could see it in her face. She was struggling while holding back her answers from him. He already knew that there was a reason she was keeping these things from him. And there was only ever one reason she would keep something from him. She was scared that he would be sent to Azkaban. "I think it means that you and Charlie need to talk about things, and you need to tell him about your fear," his suspicions were making his face blanch. The look in her face once he suggested that she talked to Charlie was close enough to an actual confession for him. "I know you love him, Ani. That's the only reason you would keep this thing from me."

"Draco-"

"No," standing up, Draco shook his head. "I have my suspicions, but I won't say it. Once the words leave my lips, I'll kill him. There is only one reason you'll lie to me. And that's so I won't be sent to Azkaban. I was blinded by Hermione before, but now I can see it in your face. Your emotions are back to me, and I can see it all. You fear him Ani, the way that Hermione once feared me. I would rather him die by my hands, but until the day you tell me with your own mouth how he hurt you, I'll leave him alone. You love him, and I can see it. You fear him, but you protect him because you can't bear to lose him."

She dropped her head. Her tears were still unable to drop. Draco knew her too well. These past weeks, he hadn't been able to read her, but once again he knew her. "I'm sorry."

"For what?"

"For being weak."

Chuckling, Draco walked over, and wrapped his arms around her. "Silly, silly girl," he kissed her forehead, "We're all weakened by the ones we love. But the next time you hide something from me, I'll hex you."

Charlie leaned against the doorframe. With his hands in his pockets, he watched the scene. Once the hugging was finished, they both went back to kicking the gnomes. This time though, they were laughing about it. He couldn't hear all of it, but he heard enough to know that Anica didn't tell Draco what happened. He wasn't stupid though, and neither was Anica. Draco knew the truth; he knew what really happened. The bond was strong, and they were closer than anyone else he knew, and Charlie admired it. Draco was able to tell what happened just by the truth in Anica's eyes, and the holes in her sentences. Where most people would just think Charlie said harsh words to her, Draco instantly knew the truth of the secret. That wasn't all he heard either. She loved him. Anica still loved him. He hurt her as badly as he did, but she still loved him. Whatever died inside of him seemed to be pumping again. There was still an ounce of hope.

She still loved him.

**Sorry for the chapter being short, but I'm still small kind sick! And also, my laptops charger is completely broken and my laptop is about to die soon. I'm not buying me a new charger because I already know my parents brought me a new laptop for Christmas, so I know that it's useless to buy a charger for only a week. I just wanted to hurry up and give you guys a chapter to thank you for being patient with this story so far(: I won't be able to upload anything until Christmas day, but I promise to make it worth the wait!**


	15. A LETTER FOR OXFORD

**This isn't a chapter. It isn't Christmas morning yet on Oahu, it's still only midnight. I'm using my brothers laptop to post this up. I got an anonymous review, and I had to respond immediately to it. I couldn't reply in a message seeing as how they're anonymous, and I couldn't wait a whole day to get this reply up. So I'm sorry for those of you who got the alert that I posted up the next chapter. That'll be later on, once I open my presents.**

**Mele Kalikimaka to all of you though. And for those of you who already had their Christmas day, I hope you guys had a pleasant one! (:**

To Oxford: I will always get my hopes up, even if it is a bad review, because it is still a review nonetheless, and I look forward to constructive criticism because in the end, I know that I do make mistakes, and I appreciate the help in any form I can take it. For the "mines" thing, we all have our own way of speaking. Whether we make up our own language, our we just like to speak in pidgin. We each have our own vocabulary, and we each have our own minds.

Now. Moving right along.

I'm very glad that you were excited when you started to read this story, it was the third one I ever posted on this website, and the fourth fanfiction I had ever tried to write. I do not see the main characters physical description as "poor" because there are a lot of beautifully influential people in the world who had such things as body piercings, and as tattoos. I do not like to discriminate against someone because their skin is flawless. Not to mention, I myself has a total of 9 tattoos, and 4 body piercings, not including my ears. As for Tonks, Sirius, and Remus... they are alive because I thought this was a fanfiction website? I believed that we could write a story seeing as how we wanted it to be? Sirius is also kept alive because this story is started from, and somewhat based on the fact that he found his daughter, after hiding her away for so many years. Fred is alive as well by the way, and I seem to remember very much crying over his death in the books. Ron, and Blaise is thrown together because I made Ginny with Harry, and Hermione with Draco. Lavender isn't in this story, and neither is Seamus. They were just an extra plus in my eyes.

I'm glad that you could deal with all of that though, because I can understand how frustrating it must have been to have so many people living, and many things different from how Miss Rowling had intended for it to be.

Yes, Charlie raped her. I'm sorry your hopes for this story ended at that chapter, but I'm glad to see that you continued to read on anyways.

It is very common for many young girls, or even women for that fact to not turn to anyone when they become raped. And as for her "brother" Draco, it is also very common for any rape victim to put blame on someone that they are extremely close to, and often turn to for comfort and protection, because they feel that they have let them down. Draco and Anica shared a bond that no one else could understand, and when he couldn't see it from her face that something had happened, she started to pull away from him. It happens in the real world as well. It isn't so much as her putting her blame on Draco, but more so, her just pulling away from everyone even more, and feeling as if she no longer has anyone in the world to turn to. Very few rapists will admit to someone (especially their brothers) about what thy have done, but I love his character, and he is starting to show remorse for his actions. When Anica didn't accept his apology or would refuse to be anywhere within the same room as him, he couldn't take it anymore. There is a thing in him called "guilt" and he had to get it off of his chest.

I know girls, women, and even men who have been raped. None of them were able to talk to their rapists after 2-4 weeks of it happening. So of course Anica didn't talk to Charlie herself, but when the twins approached her about it, she felt something new. Not only did he admit it himself to his own brothers (one of whom should be dead) but they came to her about it. There are accounts all over the world (whether they be written and documented, or just hidden) of victims being raped more than once. After a while, they victim begins to think that there is something wrong with them, and that they are meant for nothing more than this to happen to them. Like they are meant to just be used and abused constantly.

I have a very close friend of mines who had been raped. A total of 4 times. They were all by separate people, and she didn't report it until she the 4th time. I also have a cousin who was raped by her own uncle (from the side not related to me) and I knew this boy when I was growing up. He was 2 years younger than me, and his mom would burn him with endless amounts of her cigarettes, and beat him senseless with literally anything she could get her hands on. Sometimes she would even let her friends join in on it. He's dead now. Killed when I was only 7 years old. He was 5! -hence the scars on her chest-

Yes Charlie did snort when the twins confronted him about Anica being raped. He told them she had been raped, he told them he was the rapist. So when they barged into his room, and confronted him about it, he snorted because he thought he made it obvious enough. People do snort like that. Especially when they've been drinking, and you're repeating something they already established. And yes, he did do the typical thing, and come up with an excuse... but it wasn't a valid one, or even a real one. He just explained how he was too pissed to think straight, and thought Anica was hiding her true relationship with Draco, and even Blaise. He didn't go into how she was dressed or how she made a move on him. He knew what his intentions were when he went to her room, and he owned up to it.

Yes, he is a rapist! Yes, there is never an excuse for raping someone! And yes, I completely agree that society is messed up in where males dominate it, and feel it is alright to take a woman's body just because of the way she is dressed, and of how she acts. Slut or no slut, or even a prostitute, no woman, or even another man deserves to be raped. As I've mentioned before, I know victims of rape, and of abuse. I know how serious rape can be, and I don't feel as if I've joked about it in any wrong sort in this story.

Charlie began to feel guilty before he heard of Anica's past. He felt guilty once he was about to leave her room, and realized what he's just done to her. And he threw the firewhiskey bottle across the room, not a chair (just to point that out) and not because of masculine assertion, but because he's just been told the true history of Draco and Anica. People do throw things in frustration. Or is Oahu the only place that does that? Because it happens a lot here. And not with just males. Females do it as well. Sometimes... we even punch walls.

I don't hate Anica at all. I love her actually, and how her character grows. Here's this young seventeen year old female, gang raped at only thirteen years old, and abused by her foster parents from as long as she can remember. Her body is scarred by her foster moms jealousy towards her, and she tried to kill herself. From the time she was 7, she had only one real friend, then Blaise came along when she was thirteen, but most of her life, she only had Draco to lean on... or even talk to. She's used for sex, and often compared to as nothing more than a prostitute, but then this guy comes along. He doesn't ask her for sex, and he doesn't expect anything from her. She believes that she loves him, and it's enough for her to stay with him even though Draco (who's like her brother) makes it known that he doesn't like this guy. Then he turns out to be just like the rest. Not only is he not who he says he is, but he originally wanted to turn her along with Draco, and Blaise, in to Voldemort, so that he could kill them all. Yes, she has been through hell and back, but only because most of us are. These are every day trials (if we were witches and wizards of course) and as for Theo working in the same shop as her and Blaise... a lot of rapists could be anyone. Family, friends, a teacher, a stranger, a shops owner, your ballet teacher, a brothers best friend, an enemy, anyone really, and this guy just so happened to be an ex housemate of her "brother" and Blaise. He was a friend as much as an enemy, and turned to the only person that he could for a job. It does happen. So no, I don't hate Anica, I admire her character for being brave enough to face all these rapists.

As for why I have all these rapists in my story... as I said... I know victims. And I have an odd obsession for writing dark stories. Because not everything starts out all bright, and rainbows. At least not for me, my friends, or my family. And as for defending them... she's realizing that the more she stays around Theo, the stronger she becomes. Think about it for a second... Here's this guy, she thought she loved; in the beginning he didn't pressure her for anything, then in the end, he raped her. She was able to block him out of her memory for a couple of months, then once she remembers about him again, suddenly he just returns out of nowhere. But she's around him. She's able to work in the same shop as him. And she's learning to accept it. It isn't that she's defending him... she needs him around to help her become stronger. Nobody is in time out, and it's only just begun. How can a rapist get a consequence when no more than only what... 3-4 people know the truth? How can a rapist get the true punishment that they deserve when the victim doesn't turn them in? And in reality, even then, the rapists don't always get put behind bars. In actuality, a lot of them are roaming around free, because the justice doesn't see any reason to why they should do their job and serve... well justice, really.

A lot of people fall in love at first sight. At least that's what I hear all the time. In the beginning of the story, she was already feeling something for him. And the kiss helped with that. The kiss made her feel safe with him, like he could protect her. Granted, the rape overpowered that, and now she fears him. But she doesn't love him because he raped her.

I'm sorry that you're disgusted, and offended. I don't mean to offend anyone with this story. But there a lot of victims out there who can't just wake up one morning and no longer be scared. It's hard to break away from the people who raped you when one of them lives in the same house as you, and the other one works at the same shop as you. It's hard to just suddenly face your rapist, look them in the eye, and say, "you raped me, but I'm deleting you from my life, so I'm free now, I'm no longer scared of you," it's nearly impossible. I wish victims were able to do that, and if any victims have done that before, then I applause them. But most victims, from what I know of personally at least, aren't able to do that. They aren't able to break away from the things they fear most. From what I've witnessed, some victims are never able to leave their houses without an escort, some can't even hear certain words without having a breakdown, and some go on living in fear. Some may be able to look normal on the outside, but flinch with a certain touch or a certain memory. Some victims, although rarely, are able to confront their fears, and eventually move on from it. And from the people I've encountered, one could even have a Stockholm Syndrome (I don't know if that word is appropriate in this situation, but I'm hoping you know what I mean) sort of reaction, and end up falling in love with their rapist.

I also love Charlie Weasley, but sometimes the ones we love could be more dangerous than we care to believe. And I would NEVER daydream of being raped or having anyone being raped, because not only is it twisted, disgusting, or fucking disgustingly twisted in every way, but it's just fucking wrong! This story isn't buying into what society is making acceptable. I've seen rape victims. I've been at the hospital for rape victims, I've sat in the court rooms, and I watched one of the strongest women I know crumble because she's been raped. By someone she knew. So no, this story isn't to satisfy anything of mines, other than the need to write an idea that I had about Charlie. Yes, please don't judge me on any content of this story.

If you don't like my grammar, that's fine. Don't like my story, that's also fine. I can live with those comments. But please, don't ever insinuate that I'm fine with rape or society's idea of rape! I posted this story because that's what I thought this website was for. To post your fanfiction stories onto it? And because I appreciate any victim who overcomes their fears. No matter how long it takes. They take the slow steps that it takes, and they slowly learn to face everything.

And no... this is another place, I will ask you to please not judge me. I do know many people who smoke weed. My best friends all smoke weed. I have cousins who smoke weed. I live on Oahu. I can count more people on my hands who DON'T smoke weed, than I can count who does. But I can tell you that I know people who does violent things when they're drunk. I, personally, am one of them. If you get me too drunk, I will hit somebody. William and Zachariah weren't only stoned when they raped Anica, but they were drunk as well. And sometimes, people are more drunk than stoned. It does happen... again.

The only things I'm offended on are the fact that you would insinuate that I applaud rape, or fantasize about it. The rest of it, is your opinion. We're all allowed to have opinions. And we're all allowed to hate stories. Hell, look at me. I hate Lord Of The Rings, and Star Wars.

This review didn't ruin my day. Although now I am looking at my nieces, and watching them sleep while crying for them, for reasons that I'm sure foster care wouldn't appreciate me posting where anybody could read it. My day has already been ruined because it's Christmas, and my dads twin brother is on his death bed.

I would have messaged all of this to you, but as you said, you're just an anonymous reviewer, and I have no other way of getting this to you. I don't know if you're even going to bother reading it, seeing as how you don't understand why anyone would post this story in the first place.

I hope you find a story that suits your tastes, and that still has everybody dead in it. And of course I'll give you credibility, you do deserve it after all. Keep reading, keep reviewing.

Mele Kalikimaka,

Evelynn Leilani


	16. All You Need Is A Little Song

**I'm sorry I didn't post anything up on Christmas day as promised. Here's what happened…the new laptop I got on Christmas has absolutely no writing programs on it whatsoever, and I can't get onto my old laptop because the chargers broken and my brother threw it away. I've been waiting on my uncle's friend who offered to download a Microsoft word program onto my new laptop, and I was unable to get to any of my stories because something's wrong with the my flashdrive key thingy, so I'm still waiting for my payment so I can buy a new charger, and I'm still waiting for my uncle's friend… These past weeks, I've only able to do new things on my brothers laptop, which only has "text edit" so I have to then upload it as a DocX then copy it onto my mom's laptop when she's sleeping, and start a new document. It's extremely complicated, and I'm trying to keep my patience, but I couldn't hold it in anymore. I googled what to do… and I downloaded **_**Microsoft Word Starter 10**_** and some converter thing, and somehow managed to get my key thing to work, and transfer my stories to the new laptop, which is now even more complicated than before. **

**So slowly, I'm fixing up all of the stories since converting it changed it in simple ways, and editing all my stories at the same time. So if you notice, I've fixed all the grammar mistakes and just mistakes in general in past chapters of nearly every story. I couldn't do all the stories in one day, because this is taking forever, so thank you for being patient if you read more than just one. I have only one other story to fix up after this one, but it should be posted within a couple of hours, since I'm not sleeping until I finish that one! It took a while to complete these stories because after so many chapters I got lazy, and ended up doing a one-shot… so if you notice… I have about 3-4 new one-shots(:**

All You Need Is A Little Song 

"_I done had money, and I done been broke._

_I done been talked about something awful._

_Done been lied on by so many folks,_

_I done even been depressed at times."_

She was singing when they entered the back of the store. Dressed in long black jeans and a light blue turtleneck jumper, she had her hair tied back in just one long braid. It's been chilly lately, causing the singing girl to cover up more skin than she usually does. Carrying the boxes by hand because she still refused to accept her magic, Anica slowly walked from one end of the shop's storage room and to the other. Blanking out her mind so she wouldn't have to think, she continued to sing her song, and carry the boxes, without noticing the two watching friends.

"_And didn't wanna cry 'cause my pride was too strong,_

_But over the years I thought it over_

_And after struggling for so long and still holding it on,_

_I figured, can't be nothing all that wrong with crying_

_If anybody says they're that strong, they're lying."_

A frightened twitch crept over Theo's lips. It's been too long since he's heard her singing anything without any music in the background, and this frightened him to no end. When he first met Anica, she would only playfully sing along with the radio, and he was reminded of a cat trying to avoid taking a bath. Then he went to her flat one night, and found her singing in her bedroom. She hadn't been expecting anyone to come over that night and her foster parents were out of town for the weekend. It was in that moment, that he realized he may have been falling for her, no matter how hard he had been trying to get the unsuspecting girl killed. She sounded like a broken angel, and as he started to learn more about her life, he learned that she _was_ a broken angel. He quickly learned that singing was something she did only when she had too many thoughts on her mind. This type of singing wasn't when she was goofing off with a radio or singing with other people, and not caring how horrible her voice had been. This type of singing was when she opened her soul, allowed her tears to fall, and sang with such a passion that her voice called to you like a siren's call. He never understood how somebody could choose when they wanted to sound professional or horrible, or why someone with such a talent would want to sound so horrible, but that was her… she wasn't understandable.

"_See, crying is like taking your soul to the Laundromat,_

_It's like the feeling that you get,_

_When you see your grandmamma smile,_

_Or the heavens open up and blessing rains down._

_Go on child and cry._

_Go on and cry, cry, cry._

_Go on and cry, cry, cry._

_We can cry, we can cry together."_

Hearing the loud clapping sound, Anica jumped startled, and turned around. She was blushing, and flew her hands to her chest, trying to slow her heartbeat down. She hadn't been expecting anyone to come into the storage room for at least another hour. Her eyes met Theo's, and she saw the worrying look that brown windows held. Confused as to why he would be worried for her, she turned to one of her best friends, and saw a grin wide across his face. It was him that was clapping for her.

"Wow, Ani," he beamed. "Six years of being one of your best friends, and I only heard the shrieking side of your voice. Why the bloody hell, have you been hiding this?"

Blushing, Anica rubbed the back of her neck and quickly turned back around, reaching down, to pick the box back up. It was opened, and Quidditch jerseys were lying all over the floor now, so she started to pick those up instead. "I don't know what you're talking about," she said.

Smirking, Blaise shook his head. "I bet Draco's heard your hidden talents, eh," when Anica coughed in response, his eyebrows narrowed, "That bloody git. All these years he knew that we didn't have to go through all that pain of your voice causing our ears to bleed, and he didn't say anything to me? I'm going to give-" just then, a bell rang from the front of the store, causing his ramble to come to an end. "I'm not finished with you yet, Ani," he told her with a wag of his finger, then turned to Theo. "Theo, you help out Ani. I'm going to help the customer."

"Are you sure?" Theo began to sweat. "I can help the customer."

Blaise didn't respond; he only gave his friend a funny look then left the two alone. Taking in a deep breath, Theo ran both of his hands through his hair. Slowly making his way over to where Anica was still kneeling on the ground, he could see the slow trembling of her body. Keeping a distance away from her, he knelt down and began to help her throw everything back into the box. Slowly lifting his eyes, Theo's gaze met hers and his breath got caught. It looked as if she wanted to laugh about something, but she was holding it in, causing her body to tremble with a suppressed delight. Quirking an eyebrow, he saw her start to snicker even more. He was completely lost at this point.

"What's so funny?" he asked, deciding to break this nerve-wrecking silence between them.

Shaking her head, Anica threw the last item into the box then stood up. "It's nothing, really."

"You seem to want to laugh," he noted, taking in how a smirk now set itself upon her lips, as she tried to keep in her laughter some more.

"It's really not funny," her body was continuing to betray her, causing her shoulders to shake in delight while her belly tickled. Seeing the amused look in Theo's eyes while his lips set themselves into a crooked smile, she started to laugh out loud. "C'mon Theo," she said once she managed to calm herself down. "Let's just finish with these boxes. We still have to do inventory afterwards."

Theo watched her carefully, waiting for the moment that the girl was going to crack. He noticed how odd she's been acting these past days. And there was something off with Draco as well. Ever since the day that Anica prevented the twins from hexing him; Draco began to give him funny looks too. They weren't murderous glares like the twins made sure to constantly send his way, but they were nearly as threatening. In the beginning he wondered if Anica had maybe told Draco about their past, but then he quickly shook away all those thoughts. If Draco had known, there would be no way that he would have allowed him to get away with it. Let alone; allow him to continue working with the girl every day.

Carrying one of the boxes in his arms, he watched as Anica began to go through the boxes counting all the items inside of it. Somehow they had made a silent agreement where Theo would transfer everything, while she counted the inventory. He was fine with this though, because it meant that they got to spend some more alone time together. It's been only five days since the twins realized he was working with Anica, and it's been five days since she started looking at him funnily. It was like she no longer feared him, but looked at him as a challenge. There was a gleam in her eyes every time she would glance his way, and it looked as if she were determined to move on from him.

The thought of Anica moving on from him hurt like he never believed it could, but he was alright with it. He hurt her in a way that was still obviously haunting her, and he knew that she would never be able to return his love back. It wasn't David Pierce who had hurt her, it was Theodore Nott. She may have been slowly falling in love with David Pierce, but he no longer existed. He was replaced by the monster that was Theodore Nott, and if Anica was willing to try to become even an acquaintance of Theodore Nott's, well then… he wouldn't stop her. It was selfish of him, but he'd rather have Anica at least acknowledging him in some way, then have her reject him in the worst way possible… fearing him for the rest of her life, to the point that she couldn't even look in his direction.

"Alright," he slowly said, now beginning to transfer the items that had already been counted, "Your body is still shaking, so what is it? What's so funny?"

Shaking her head, Anica refused to meet his gaze. "You won't think it's funny."

"Now you have to tell me," Theo rolled his eyes, making sure that it didn't come out sounding like a demand. "Why are you laughing?"

Slowly lifting her head, Anica saw his darkened brown eyes carefully assessing her. Biting on her lower lip, she let her hand travel to her stomach. She could feel the vibrations coming from it as she saw a darkened eyebrow rising higher in an amused confusion. "Please don't ask."

"I'm asking," he crossed his arms over his chest now.

"Alright," as soon as she opened her mouth to tell him what she found to be so funny, she started to laugh again. Slowing down, she tried to tell him, but the laughter just kept on coming out. Shaking her head, she opened her mouth to speak once more, but instead tears fell from her eyes, and she was now cackling in joy.

"Theo," Blaise called, walking into the scene. Looking back from a now annoyed Theo, and the cackling Anica, he shook his head. "I don't want to know," turning back to Theo, he said, "I need your help. There's a couple who wants to buy a complete Quidditch set for their twins' birthday. Today's their birthday and one's in Ravenclaw while the other is in Gryffindor. One's a boy and the other is a girl. Neither of them has ever played Quidditch before in their life, but they want to learn."

Nodding his head, Theo looked back at Anica, who was now wiping her tears away. Once she realized that he was watching her though, she began to laugh hysterically again. Shaking his head, he started towards Blaise, "I'll take the boy. I think I've had enough of crazy birds for the day."

"_I was going through some changes in my life,_

_Cussing and complaining every night._

_Telling god, the way he's treating me ain't right, and how I don't deserve this._

_A voice from somewhere came to me and said:_

_You got the audacity to fix your mouth to disrespect, how soon we forget."_

Continuing to sing in a low tune, Anica decided to face the entrance to the storage room, so this time she wouldn't be caught off guard. She caught the worry in Theo's eyes when he heard her singing, and she didn't want another confrontation from him. Seeing the worry that he had for her, reminded her of her days with David Pierce, and thinking of David Pierce reminded her of something funny that he once did. She didn't mean to laugh, but when she saw Theo staring at her, and questioning her, it just happened. At least he didn't bother to ask her why she was singing. That was something that he knew about her; a secret that she felt he could now use to destroy her if he wanted to. Shaking the thoughts away, she continued to sing…

"_And he said:_

_Remember when you were sick and you got better,_

_Remember I put your family back together,_

_Remember I could have cut you off forever._

_So no matter how bad you think it hurts…"_

Slowly things were beginning to make sense in her mind once more. She still continued to sleep under her bed every night, and the night of her conversation with Draco, she made Kreacher change her linens. The house-elf gave her a strange look, and she felt uneasy around him since then. It was as if he knew what happened, and it didn't ease her mind when Kreacher attacked Charlie the other morning. They were all sitting in the kitchen, eating breakfast, when Charlie decided to ask Anica if she wanted to go with him into muggle London. He didn't know what to get her for her birthday, and he wanted to take her shopping so she could choose what she wanted.

Anica began hyperventilating while Kreacher growled then attacked Charlie. It was from that moment that Sirius began to keep a close eye on the red head. He knew something was wrong after a while, but it wasn't until Kreacher actually physically attacked Charlie, that Sirius actually knew something was wrong. After his daughter assured him that nothing was wrong, and that Kreacher was just moody about something, Sirius checked up on Charlie. He found the red head's room in a total ruin, while he laid sprawled on the floor. While healing the bite wounds and claw marks, he asked him what happened. Charlie refused to talk about it, and Sirius was left in the dark. Now he made it a personal mission to never leave the two of them alone together.

It was in that moment that Anica realized just exactly who Sirius was to her. All this time she had been calling him 'Dad,' and she even had that conversation with Draco, where she was beginning to learn what it meant to have a father. But she didn't think she would ever know what it meant. Not so soon at least. Sirius was always doing things that surprised her. Every day, he had a new thing to teach her about fathers and their daughters. It was when Kreacher attacked Charlie; that she learned just how annoying an over-protective father could really be. Although she was grateful that he was now making sure Charlie would never be alone with her, it was also annoying.

"_It could've been worse, you could've been dead._

_You could've been paralyzed, confined to a bed._

_You could've lost everything, you should've lost everything._

_But somebody's watching you, and gave you another chance."_

The night that she and Draco talked, Anica walked back into the house and found Charlie waiting for her. He tried to talk to her, but like always she was quick to run away. Something was different that time though, for the first time… she looked back. She had to turn and run to the nearest loo once she did though. He had a smirk on his face. It was as if he knew some big secret that she didn't, and the thought terrified her.

Growing up, Anica didn't believe in anything. She didn't believe in magic until Draco came along. She didn't believe in family, and now Sirius was proving her wrong. She found herself living in a magical world with her father, and her roommate was a professional dragon trainer. There were many things that Anica didn't believe in, but somehow they were all proven wrong in the end – except for two things: god and love. It wasn't until the night that she and Draco talked, that she started to speak to somebody. Late at night, she would lie on her makeshift bed, and she would open up. She would talk to somebody that she never had any reason to believe in before, and she would read until she fell asleep.

Her mornings were becoming lighter since she started confiding in someone. She asked for his forgiveness last night. She felt selfish, crying to somebody who she still didn't believe in, and asking for his help. She could feel something changing in her, but she still didn't believe in him. She claimed that all those nights when she would be getting beaten, she would cry to him for help. She asked for his patience, she claimed that he took too long to answer her prayers; that it would take a while before she started to believe in him. She thought it was odd, and that it contradicted itself; asking for forgiveness for not believing in the person that you're asking forgiveness from, but she felt that she owed him an explanation. She felt that she owed some sort of reasoning for doubting him.

Then there was love… she believed in love as much as… well she just didn't believe in love. Draco proved to her that magic existed because well… he was a wizard with a wand who did spells in front of her. He snuck her into a world where she ran into a giant and met a goblin on her very first day. He would heal her wounds with a single word and some smelling lotion things; he proved to her that magic did exist. Sirius proved to her that family is real when he transformed from a stray dog into her father. He took her away from the hell she knew, and he brought her home. He spoke to her about her life, and asked her questions about things that most fathers don't really care about. He asked about her friends, her favorite color, if she liked to read, who her favorite author was, what she liked to eat, what her favorite weather was, what kind of things she liked to do, and he even asked her what type of flower she liked best. Sirius gave her a real family; something she never thought possible before.

Then love… once again, there was love. She thought she loved David Pierce, and we all know how that turned out. Then she thought she loved Charlie, and in a way she still does. It was sick and it was twisted, but she knew no other way to describe it. And if what she felt for Charlie Weasley was love… well then it was just simple… love did not exist.

"What do you think's wrong with Anica?" Theo asked Blaise once they were alone in the shop.

Hearing a sudden shriek, some dropped items, and then laughter coming from the back room, Blaise quirked an eyebrow, "What makes you think anything's wrong with her?" he asked, hiding his chuckle.

"She won't stop laughing," Theo sighed. "And I keep asking her what's so funny, but she only looks at me then starts laughing again."

Blaise snorted now, "Well you are a funny bloke to look at."

Rolling his eyes, Theo said, "I'm just saying, something doesn't-" he allowed himself to trail off. He heard her… her voice was getting louder now. "That bitch!" he cried out.

"_You are my fire._

_The one… desire._

_Believe me when I say…_

_I want it that way."_

Entering the store, Anica had a smug smirk on her face as she walked out from the storage room. Blaise looked between the still singing girl and the now red faced Slytherin. He seemed to be the only one who was confused in this whole thing. Theo shook his head at Anica, who was slowly walking over to the counter.

"_But we are two worlds apart,_

_Can't reach to your heart_

_When you say,_

_That I want it… that way."_

"Is this why you were laughing?" Theo asked. Crossing his arms over his chest, his lips were pouted and his eyes were slanted.

Taking in the scene, Anica began to laugh in the middle of the song. He seemed oddly innocent right now, pouting like a little child. It was odd to think of him as innocent, when she knew firsthand how he was anything but. "Maybe."

"I'm lost," Blaise sighed, "Why is this song funny?"

"It's not the song," Theo sighed, shutting his eyes. "It's the memory that comes with it."

"What memory?" Blaise asked. Noticing the light pink tinge taking over Theo's currently reddened cheeks; he looked back at Anica and saw her amused grin. "Does this have to do with your secret past that you won't tell us about?"

Theo stared at Anica, and she stared back. Theo expected Anica to break down and possibly start crying. Or retreat back into her shell, but what she did do shocked him more than it shocked Blaise. Grinning like a madwoman, she winked and said, "Maybe," before she started cackling again.

"_Tell me why, ain't nothing but a heartache._

_Tell me why, ain't nothing but a mistake._

_Tell me why, I never wanna hear you say…_

_I want it… that way."_

"That's enough now," Theo growled at her.

Not feeling any fear, Anica began to wipe her tears of laughter from her eyes, "Aw," she pouted in a jokingly way, "But I love that song, Theo."

Shaking his head, he pointed his finger at her, "That's what you said to trick me that night, Anica. And I'm not falling for it again."

"You don't have to," she smirked. "You already did once."

"We agreed to never mention it again."

"I seem to remember making that agreement with someone else," she said, tapping her finger against her chin, and watching his face for his reaction. "I don't seem to remember you being there though… hmm… nope, his eyes were green, not brown. And I seem to recall light blonde hair, not black. And it was a little shaggy, not spiky," she shook her head, "Nope… nope, I don't remember making the agreement with you, _Theo_."

He growled at her. She was right. The little conniving wench was right. And she was tricky, that one. She made the agreement with David Pierce. It seemed like she had gone mad. She was no longer choosing to fear Theo, because she decided that mocking David would be more fun. "That isn't fair."

"What isn't fair?" Blaise was more confused now then he was in the beginning. He had never seen Theo so pouty before, and Anica looked as if she just won the muggle lottery.

Anica only laughed harder, then jumped onto the counter top. "Oh come on Theo, sing with me."

"No!"

"Yes!"

"No!"

"Yes!"

"No, Anica!"

"Please," the image of her pouting was soon destroyed by the snigger that closely followed it. "Very well then," she sighed, "Blaise sing with me. I know you know this song."

Shaking his head in mild annoyance, Blaise turned to her, "Oh, so now you want to acknowledge me."

"It's an inside joke," she rolled her eyes. "Don't be such a baby Blaise," when Blaise refused to say anything, she sighed. "Very well then, how's Ron doing?"

Scratching his head, he glared at her, "He's fine. And what did I tell you about changing the subject? I want to know… let me in… I want an inside joke too."

"She tricked me into singing the song one night," Theo huffed out in annoyance. "That's all you need to know."

Blaise had already accepted the fact that the two of them seemed to know each other from before, and he already learned to not question their past relationship or how on earth they managed to meet each other, but he had to know… "And how exactly did she do that?"

"She told me that she loved this song."

"She does," Blaise shrugged his shoulders. "She used to get me and Draco to dance along with it all the time. So why does it matter?"

Licking her lips in anticipation, Anica saw Theo grit his teeth together, and she laughed even harder. "It was different that time," she smirked. "I convinced him to sing it at a muggle karaoke bar."

"Oh," Blaise wasn't sure what he was more shocked at; the fact that Theo went into a muggle karaoke bar or that fact that he actually sang this song in a muggle karaoke bar.

"The best part was when-"

"I will hex you if you finish that sentence!" Theo suddenly cried from across the room.

"Blaise is right here, the twins are right across the way, Draco's my brother and he's dating Hermione Granger. Harry Potter is my godbrother; Remus Lupin is my godfather, and Sirius Black is my actual father," she replied in a bored drawl. "Your hexes do not frighten me, Theodore Nott."

Agh… she was frustrating. Narrowing his eyes, he glared at her. "Ifelloffthestageandlandedona tablebreakingitinhalfwhileda ncing," he mumbled.

"What was that?"

"I hate you Anica," he snarled.

Blinking as if she hadn't even heard him, Anica stated, "The feeling's mutual, Theo."

"I fell off the stage and landed on a table, breaking it, while dancing," he sighed in defeat.

Laughter was heard throughout the Quidditch shop for the rest of the day. The twins walked over to see if Anica was on her break yet, but quickly made a run for it when they heard the cackling of Anica and the gasping of Blaise, while Theo shouted at both of them to shut up: there were some things that even the Weasley twins feared walking in on. Blaise and Anica were hunched over together, wiping their own tears while Theo stalked away, scowling at them both.

He didn't understand why she had to bring that up. It wasn't as if she could show anyone the tape that he knew she had from that night. If Draco were to watch that video, he would instantly know that Theo was David. If Blaise were to hear his old name, then he would instantly hex him. They all knew that Anica had a secret past, linking the two of them together, but she promised him that only the twins knew the truth of how they knew each other. She didn't want Draco to know that Theo was really David, because Draco would murder him in a heartbeat. She admitted to him that she was only protecting his past for Draco's safety, but she can't exactly keep it hidden if she's going to go around bringing up moments from the past.

Leaning against a shelf in the storage room, he shut his eyes and slammed his face into his hands. This wasn't good at all. He tried so hard to forget about what he's done to her, the same way that he knew she tried to forget about it as well, but it was hard to do. How could he forget their past together when she kept bringing up memories? Granted, this was the first time that she mentioned a memory, but it was a happy memory. How could he pretend like nothing happened when she brought up the night he sang that silly little American song to her in front of a hundred muggles? How can he pretend like they didn't exist when she had to mention the night that she rushed to his side with worry on her face when the table collapsed onto him? How can he give her the space he tried so hard to grant her, when she's over here laughing about the time he pulled her into his arms, kissed her, and told her how much he loved her?

They made a promise that night. They would never mention the fact that he publically embarrassed himself, but he also changed their relationship that night. He no longer acted like a prick towards her. He no longer checked out any other female who walked pass them, and he reminded her of how much he loved her. At least he would have, if he didn't tie her up only three days later.

**Disclaimer: Songs- Cry by Lyfe Jennings! It Could've Been Worse by Lyfe Jennings! I Want It That Way by Backstreet Boys! (:**

**A/N: I'm an epic fail… I know… sorry! I don't know when my next update is going to be because right now, too many things are happening. I'm still trying to fix all my other 300 stories from my flashkey thingy, but more importantly, we're waiting on news for my uncle. On Christmas Eve, we got a call from my dad's sister that my dad's twin brother was in a coma and could die any day. Then New Years Eve, we got a call saying that he woke up. An hour later, he was in a coma again. Last night my brother and my dad flew up to California to see him, and now they're talking about pulling the plug. This uncle of mine is the only one from my dad's side of the family that I really know. My mind is too complicated right now for me to focus on writing.**

**Its 2 in the morning here, but I quickly typed this chapter out because I haven't posted one yet… I owed you guys something at least. So I'm sorry that it wasn't that good or if it seemed like it was off from the entire story, my mind just isn't in the right state to write anything good right now! It's 2in the morning, I'm eating hot pockets and peaches n' cream, listening to **_**Black Veil Brides**_** and crying while writing. I don't think anyone will be able to write good while doing this(: right now, I'm just trying to update all my stories, before I leave you guys for a while again!**


	17. Midnight Balloons

Midnight Balloons

Combinations of golden metals, springs, a feathered mattress, and bright green colored sheets were staring back at her. Glancing at the clock next to her scattered pillows, she saw it was just after midnight; she was officially eighteen years old now. If she was still living in the muggle world, this would have been the greatest news of her life because it meant she was of age now, and would no longer have to live with those horrid people who adopted her. Shutting her eyes, she took in deep breaths and tried to even them out so she could fall asleep, but it just wasn't happening for her. After a couple of minutes, she released a loud groan. Climbing out from beneath her bed; she saw the card and balloons standing in the center of her room and started laughing. This was a tradition of Blaise's from when she first met him. Once it reached midnight, a bunch of balloons would magically appear in her room with a card attached to it. An owl would deliver her gift later on in the day, and then she would see him the next weekend afterwards with another gift. Seeing as they always leave for Hogwarts the day after her birthday, she would feel guilty for keeping Draco out from like ten at night all the way until around two in the morning, and not to mention the trouble the two boys would have gotten into if they got caught sneaking out within their first week of school. She smiled at the thought of them no longer having to leave her the next day for another year.

Walking over to the balloons, Anica didn't have to count them to know there were eighteen totaled. Blaise always gave her the number of her age. Since it's her eighteenth birthday, she had eighteen balloons. Turning on the room's light, she grinned when she saw the card. It was two feet long and a foot wide with the picture of the muggle version of Sabrina the Teenaged Witch on it. Sitting on a broom, Sabrina was charmed to tip her hat over and wave at Anica. Laughing and waving back, she opened the card.

_Happy Birthday Anica!_

_ I can't believe you're eighteen now; it seems like only yesterday you were twelve years old, and we were meeting for the first time… now if you were still living with those horrid muggles then you know Draco and I would already be at your window, packing up your things and bringing you to my manor – since you're more comfortable at my place than Draco's – and you would be living in the wizarding world. But seeing as how you're already living in the wizarding world… well we need a new plan! I doubt Sirius would appreciate us kidnapping you when he only just got you back, eh._

_ I know this is different from the striped or polka dotted birthday cards I normally give you, but I felt this was more appropriate enough; seeing as you're no longer a muggle! I'll see you in a couple of hours at your party, and you'll get the rest of your gifts from me then. I feel weird seeing you on the actual day of your birthday, but it's a tradition that I'm looking forward to… this first weekend though – just the three of us are going out. Draco told me you guys are keeping up your late night picnic traditions, and obviously I'm keeping up my midnight traditions. I'm looking forward to your eightieth birthday; imagine eighty balloons popping into the center of your room at midnight and giving you a heart attack._

_ I'll see you later! Happy birthday!_

_ Love, _

_ Blaise_

Smiling and laughing at the words she read, Anica imagined an eighty year old version of herself waking up at the sound of balloons popping into her room at midnight, and screaming as she jumped out of bed. Walking over to her dresser, she placed the card on top of it, and kept the balloons where they were. Deciding to go for a little jog to help her become tired, she slipped on black basketball shorts and taking off the oversized t-shirt she was wearing, she put on a white sports bra underneath a grey hoody that reached her knees. Rolling her hair up into a bun, and putting on her shoes, she grabbed her iPod from underneath the bed, and started walking downstairs.

"Happy birthday, Mistress!"

Turning to where the squeaking voice was coming from, Anica smiled, "Thank you, Kreacher," she was already used to the fact that house-elves don't sleep.

"Is Mistress leaving at such a late time?"

Nodding her head, Anica started towards the door, "Yes Kreacher, I'm going to go jogging. I can't sleep and it helps me to clear my mind."

"Kreacher can make Mistress a sleeping draught," Kreacher offered, following her towards the door and fidgeting with his too long fingers. "It's going to start raining and Kreacher doesn't want Mistress to get sick."

Smiling kindly at the worried little walnut looking thing, Anica shook her head, "I'm fine Kreacher, I promise. Would you mind having a hot cup of tea ready for me when I get back home though?"

Eagerly nodding his head, Kreacher grinned, "Of course Mistress. Be careful Mistress."

Thanking the house-elf once more, Anica left the safety of her home, and placed both earphones into her ears. Turning her iPod on as loudly as it would go, she started to run. It was less of a jog and more of a sprint. She was still in muggle London; the part that Number twelve Grimmauld Place was hidden in, but she had no idea where she was going or what she was running from. All she knew was that she was running with only the sounds of her own heartbeat and the pounding music to accompany her.

_Good looking out little homie,_

_Glad that you showed me_

_Just what he was all about!_

_Good looking out little shorty,_

_Guess she wasn't for me._

_Glad that I found this all out!_

_Good looking out,_

_See this is what I'm talking about._

_Cause we both play the game_

_Never gonna change, all I gotta say is_

_Good looking out!_

The past days had been confusing her. Ever since she sang that one day in the shop, Theo was mixed between trying to continue avoiding her and starting little conversations with her. She could see that he was torn with his memories, and she felt something. It wasn't love… no… it would never be love. For a while she thought she loved David, but it wasn't that; she knew better now. She knew that it wasn't forgiveness that she was feeling towards Theo because she didn't forgive him yet. It wasn't hatred, because she no longer hated him; she still blamed him for what he did, and held him responsible for it because he knew what he was doing when he did it, and it wasn't… fear. It was as if she no longer feared him.

She laughed with him; _at_ him. She teased him, mocked him, and she even playfully punched him when he made a joke about her eating as if she were a Weasley. She wasn't stupid enough to trust him, but it was as if a weight had been lifted, and she could breathe around him now; the other day she didn't hear him approaching her from behind because she was too caught up in her thoughts of Charlie, and when his hand touched her shoulder to grab her attention, she didn't even flinch.

"Oh," she said, standing back up and turning around. Seeing that it was Theo, she simply only smiled, "I'm on the last box," she told him, not caring in the latest that his hand was still on her shoulder.

Looking from his hand to her face, Theo decided to chance it; he kept it in place. "It's Wednesday," he told her. "The twins are here to take you to lunch."

"Alright," she was still smiling. Not bothering to remove his hand off her body, she wiped the sweat off her forehead. "There's only three more jerseys in here," she told him, "I can finish it when I get back."

"It's fine," he shook his head, finally taking a step back and watching her closely. "I can do it."

"Are you sure?"

Nodding his head, he licked his lips, "Are you feeling alright, Anica?"

Tilting her head to the side, Anica watched him as he watched her. His gaze was the same as David's; intense. "You look like him."

"Who?"

"David," she said, reaching out and removing a stray hair that somehow managed to fall out from its spikes. "Your stares are the same," she smiled, tracing his eyes, "Intense and hardened; watching closely around you, waiting for someone to attack you," moving her fingers down to his lips, she chuckled as he shivered at her light touch, "And the left side of your lip curls when you're trying to hold back a smile, and the dimples in your cheeks deepen every time you laugh. And I noticed the other day that your eyes darken a shade when you scowl, but it also causes dimples to form in your chin; just like David's did."

Moving away from her touch, Theo shook his head; "I am David, Anica. All I did was change my hair and my eye color, but we were the same person."

"No," she also shook her head. "You aren't; you're both different people. Your eyes might be the same and your smiles are the same, even the way you laugh; I see him in you, but you're different."

"How?"

Keeping her eyes on his, her smile dropped. "David was a cruel little boy. He was rude to me and he eyed other birds while we were on dates. But in the end he loved me," keeping her stance, she watched his face; waiting for his emotions to give him away, "Theo hurt me. Theo was the one who kidnapped me, and raped me for three days straight, and planned the deaths of my brother and best friend. But in the end, Theo was the one who released me. David kept me at his side; trapping me with his bittersweet words and his sour kisses, refusing to release me from a prison that I was addicted to. Theo allowed me my freedom and gives me the space I need to move on."

Theo felt tears in the corners of his eyes. He knew she was fighting an inner struggle when she saw him every day, and he didn't expect any type of friendship from her. Working closer to her every day, Theo slowly worked up the courage to talk to her and even make jokes with her, but he held himself back; scared to frighten her away. He wasn't expecting her to say this to him though. She saw David's features in him. "Did you love him?" he asked her suddenly. "You took the time to study his eyes and his smiles and dimples. Did you love David?"

Thinking about it before blurting an answer she might regret, Anica kept her head still. "I loved the idea of him. I was safe with him. He kept me protected and he made me feel wanted."

"He was such an arse to you," Theo said in disbelief. "While snogging you, he would wink at another bird. He would disappear for half an hour during a date, and leave you stranded alone in a restaurant."

Nodding her head, Anica chuckled. She did sound crazy didn't she? "He always came back," she shrugged her shoulders. "I would call him in the middle of the night when Margo and Edward would kick me out, and he would come for me. He left me in the middle of our date to shag some random bird, but he always came back to me. He didn't pressure me for sex."

"And Theo forced it from you," this was the first time they were actually confronting what happened between them. All these past weeks, it's been like some unspoken agreement between them to just forget about it. It seemed like they both only needed time to come to terms with the truth. "David kept you safe and Theo hurt you."

"They both hurt me," she chuckled, scratching her forehead. "I'm not daft. David was a crappy excuse for a boyfriend, but I was a naïve little girl," seeing Theo's confusion she smiled lightly, "But they both kept me safe at the same time. Theo didn't turn me into Voldemort like he originally wanted to; he took me back home and warned me that the war started."

"I'm sorry Anica," he sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. "For David and for Theo."

Taking in a deep breath, Anica processed his words. She hated that word because it meant they would just hurt you again. But… "You didn't apologize for what you did," she frowned, "You only apologized for David and yourself, but you didn't apologize for what you or David did."

"Saying I'm sorry for what we both did to you doesn't erase the past, Anica," he shook his head, continuing to rub the back of his neck. "At the end of the day, I still hurt you. He still hurt you. And at the end of the day; I'm still David. It's not as if he was some other person. Like I told you, it was all me, minus the features."

Smiling, Anica stepped closer to him, and kissed Theo's forehead, "And like I said, David and Theo were two completely different people."

"Anica," he called to her, just as she turned to walk away.

Looking back at him, Anica showed her confusion; "Yeah?"

"Who else hurt you?"

Cocking an eyebrow, and biting her lower lip, while silently cursing herself as she remembered that David always knew what her facial expressions meant, Anica tried to play it off, "I don't know what you're talking about."

"I thought you were jumpy because of me," Theo told her, cocking his own eyebrow at her face. "And you're nervous right now. You should know how well David was at reading you, Anica. You aren't jumpy because of me; you were jumpy before I came back. You got better when I came back. You're facing your fears aren't you? I'm one of your fears, but by facing me; you can face whoever it is that hurt you. That's it isn't it? Someone else hurt you the same way that I hurt you. Who is it?"

_I remember in the beginning, boy I thought I was so sure._

_I thought I found the one and my search was over._

_Never judge a book by its cover, oh yeah, oh yeah._

_Something told me from the get go you was the wrong dude._

_What looks good ain't always the best for you,_

_But I'm cool. I'm glad I'm seeing the real you._

_Oh yeah, oh yeah-_

_Now you see I thought about it_

_I had to flip the script and think about you._

Feeling her feet pounding against the graveling road, she could feel the crunching from the tiny dirt rocks. Light rain began to drizzle down onto her; telling her she should turn around and return back to the warmth of her home, but she wasn't ready to yet. Home meant she had to face reality, and reality meant that by some sort of weird twisted sense of humor that fate seems to harbor; Charlie confronted her the same day that she and Theo had their awkward little talk. The talk with Theo helped her claim back what little strength both David and Theo took from her. Talking with Theo helped him to understand where she was coming from, and it helped her to not flinch every time he came near her. She didn't love him, she didn't forgive him, she didn't trust him, and through some sort of miracle; she didn't fear him anymore either. To a point.

"Anica!"

Groaning as she heard his voice call out her name, Anica tried to run from him. She already had such a good day; she and Theo came to an understanding, and the twins treated her to a fancy restaurant for lunch in muggle London that she had been dying to try. She didn't want to have to face him either. Seeing the familiar arm blocking her path; she began to hyperventilate. "Move," she told him. Damn… to think she thought she was doing better at not flinching; maybe it worked per person and not in a group?

Shaking his head, Charlie made sure to keep his arm in place; but at a spot that he wouldn't touch her. "I just want to talk."

"I had a nice day today," her voice was soft; sounding like a child's plea. "I don't want to ruin it, please just go away."

"I know about what happened between you and Draco," he knew that she knew he knew the truth, and this was the first time it was being spoken between them, but he had to get it off his chest. "I know you don't want to talk to me, so don't talk… just listen to me; please. I know that jealousy is never a good excuse to hurt anyone or do what I did. I'm not going to ask for an apology-"

She didn't even realize that her eyes were shutting until they flew open. "You're not?" all her life she hated apologies. What are the odds of the two main people who should be begging for her forgiveness, not asking for it? In the same day…

"No," he shook his head. "I went into a rage when I heard about you sleeping with Draco," Charlie admitted, his face growing paler as he realized he was the one talking about what happened that day. "Working with dragons for as long as I did, I watch as they force the female dragons as a sort of claim on her. It's not an excuse or even a reason for what I did, but that's what I did. I heard about you sleeping with Draco, and I didn't take any time to breathe or listen to what you had to say. Draco told me there was a reason behind it and that you shouldn't be alone because of whatever the reason was, but I had a one tracked mind. I went into your room; already knowing I was going to try to claim you as mine."

"I'm not a bloody dragon," she told him. Her voice was hushed. Tears were stinging her cheeks.

"I know," he chuckled softly, still not removing his arm in case she ran. "But I wanted to claim you. Somewhere along the weeks of knowing you, I felt something for you Nica, something that one could only be described as love. I hated myself for what I did to you. When I left your room that day, I looked back at you and I wanted to just hold you tightly in my arms and cry with you. Then you wouldn't accept my apologies or look at me. And the mere sight of me or the mention of my name had you puking, and it made me so sick. I still hate myself."

"Good."

"When the twins told me about your history, I cried for you Nica," he continued, ignored her scoff, "I was one of them. I should have been protecting you and promising you that you were safe and that nothing like that would happen again. But instead, I became one of them. I became a part of the story; one of the monsters that scarred you. Until that day I never even imagined the word 'rape,' but now it's what I do. I raped you Anica."

_Well there's no doubt about it, you know I can't deny it,_

_I feel the same to._

Feeling the rain beating down on her skin, whipping her with some sort of vengeance, Anica recognized her tears blending in with the rain. They were one in the same now as she thought back to that day. Charlie trapped her against the wall, and spoke about things that she wasn't ready to face yet. With Theo, she was ready to face it because she was the one who confronted it; she was the one who initiated the conversation, she was the one who brought up the past. She had nearly four months to prepare for it; the circumstances were different. She just wasn't ready for Charlie yet.

"I don't want to talk about this," she said, trying to push him away, but retreating once her hands touched his arms, backing against the wall as if she got burnt from his touch.

Seeing the reaction she had to his touch, Charlie sighed and finally removed it. "You don't have to talk Nica, just listen. Please."

"I said please too," she told him, avoiding his eyes, "That night."

"I know," he nodded his head, continuing to watch her. He didn't care that she wasn't looking at him; the main thing is that she stayed in place. "I don't deserve your forgiveness Nica," he told her. "Apologizing won't take away what I did to you, and it won't make you trust me again. I'm not expecting you to trust me again or even be willing to hang out with me or be alone with me. I just needed you to hear me. I know what I did was wrong. I'm living with the pain of knowing I hurt you. I wanted to protect you; I wanted to love you; to show you the upside of dating a dragon trainer. During that game, I was so scared that my brothers were going to ask me who I loved because I was scared of how you would react, but now I would rather have you avoiding me because you don't love me like I love you instead of having you frightened to even be in the same room as me."

"Don't," she shook her head. "I'm not ready to confront this yet," finally looking up at him, she felt nauseous once more. "The mere sight of you sickens me. Even now, I'm holding in the vomit; there's a rusted acid taste in my mouth and it's only when you're by me. Just… just give me more time."

Sighing, Charlie saw that he was defeated. At least he got to say some part of how he felt. He was about to blurt out that he knew she still loved him, but decided against it; it would take time to work that part in, but he had more hope now. "Alright," he nodded his head, taking a step away from her. "Thank you for listening to this much at least."

Stopping her running, Anica bent forward and began heaving. Soon enough the contents of her dinner began to spill out onto the road. The strength of the wind caused the puke to fly a little while the rain washed it away. Holding onto her stomach, Anica tried to forget about Charlie. She still continued to throw up every time he was mentioned or thought of, and it was beginning to annoy her.

"Kreacher," she called into the rain, after looking around to make sure that there were no muggles around.

Following a loud pop, Kreached appeared in the middle of muggle London. Taking one look at his mistress, he grabbed onto her hand, "Kreacher is taking Mistress home."

**Disclaimer: Song- Good Looking Out! Artists- Mila J and Marques Houston!**

**A/N: I'm still excited to finish this story because I know how it's going to continue and I know how it ends, but I've lost all sorts of motivation to write it… as sad as it is, I've learned from experience that reviews help to motivate me… I'm working on 8 different stories, and writing a chapter for each one always gets complicated, but it helps me out and this story no longer gets any favorites, alerts or reviews and I don't rush to write it anymore because I'm getting more reviews on my other stories so I'm rushing to finish those ones instead. It's 5 in the morning and I decided to write a quick chapter for this story since it's been a while… if you guys want the chapters to come quicker like they used to in the beginning or like how my other stories do then just push that little button…**

**If you guys still like this story, let me know why. If you guys hate it now, let me know why just like Oxford did. Reviews motivate me to write good chapters for you guys and to finish the stories quicker. I already finished one of my other stories, and I'm almost pau with another one. So review please(:**


	18. A Second Birthday

_**First off: I want to say thank you to those of you who reviewed! I'm glad to know that at least some of you are still looking forward to my updates and haven't given up on this story! (:**_

**A/N: Sorry that took so long to update, but I got too caught up in reading this one story that literally took me a week to read all of the series that's posted up so far and my brother and I got caught up in catching up on Games Of Throne (kind of an awkward show to watch with your brother when all of it is about incest and whatnot, but still a good show) and I don't upload anything on Sunday's because it's a movie day for me and my brother, plus the Superbowl! Also I was helping one of my friends with a research paper for WCC and two of my best friends gave birth on Saturday (which is also my cousins birthday) and my cousin was in the hospital because he got mobbed while celebrating his birthday at a club so needless to say I was in the hospital all day. Sorry, I'm rambling now… here's the story you've been waiting for…(:**

A Second Birthday

Waking up to the screeching of an owl, Anica rubbed her forehead and called out to Kreacher. "Mistress called Kreacher?" he asked with a sounding pop, already peeking under her bed.

"Can you bring me a potion for hangovers?" she asked him. "My head is still hurting."

"Is that all Mistress needs?"

"Could you also give me whatever that ruddy owl is bringing to me?"

Anica heard the snapping of fingers and the hoot of an owl then she saw Kreacher poking his head under the bed once more. "Mistress has a present," he told her, passing her the wrapped up box. "Kreacher will be back with Mistress's potion."

"Thanks."

Groaning as the thoughts of puking while jogging and having to call for Kreacher to help her out, returned to her, Anica stared at the wrapped box in her hands. It was simple and tiny; just a little box wrapped in pink and white striped paper. Shaking it to see if she could hear anything moving around in there, she frowned when she couldn't make out what it was. Slowly running her fingers through the paper, she began to gently open it up; not wanting to rip the beautiful paper. Beneath all the paper was a soft red velvet box. Crawling out from under her bed, she heard the popping sound from the middle of the room; sounding the arrival of Kreacher.

"Thank you Kreacher."

"Mistress is welcome," he bowed to her, taking back the empty vile. "Master Sirius is downstairs already Mistress. Would Mistress like Kreacher to make anything special for Mistress's birthday?"

Politely smiling and shaking her head, Anica said; "You can make whatever you want to, Kreacher."

While Anica was in the shower, she heard her father knocking on the bathroom door. Shouting that she would be out in a second; she turned off the water and quickly got dressed into white leggings and a light pink colored top that reached her thighs and hung off her shoulders just a bit; showing the hot pink straps of her bra. Ignoring her hair for now, she stepped out of the room and smiled when she saw him sitting on the chair in her room instead of her bed.

"Is everything alright?" she asked, walking across to grab the box off the dresser.

Nodding his head, he stood up and walked over to her. "Happy birthday, my darling."

Smiling she allowed him to kiss her forehead while she hugged him. "Thanks Dad."

"This is only the second birthday of yours that we've been together," he told her, trying his hardest not to blink. "The first time we celebrated your birthday, you were turning one. And now… now, you're turning eighteen."

"I'm grown up now," she nodded her head.

"Yes," he sighed, nodding his head as well. "Yes, you are."

Smiling at the pity in her father's voice, Anica chuckled, "But I'm still your daughter right? I mean you've got me now, and there's much more birthdays coming up. So it's not a huge thing."

"Yes," Sirius said; his smile not meeting his eyes. "You're right; there are many more birthdays for us to spend together," his eyes landed on the box in her hands. "Who's that from?"

"I don't know," she admitted. "It came to me this morning. I didn't look at it yet."

"Well I'll leave you to finish getting ready," he told her. "Kreacher kicked me away from the kitchen; something about having your permission to cook whatever he wanted to?"

"Oh yeah," she blushed. "He asked me what I wanted him to make me, and I told him to make anything he wanted."

"Well, he said he'll call us when it's completed," when his daughter nodded her head to him in a response, he nodded his back. "I'll see you downstairs," kissing his daughter's forehead once more, he turned to leave then saw the balloons and cocked an eyebrow. "When did these get here?"

"Hmm?" turning away from the curious little box in her hands, she saw her father staring at the balloons and started to laugh. "Oh right, I forgot about that; it's a tradition from when I first met Blaise. Every year at midnight on my birthday, he sends me a bouquet of balloons; one balloon for each year of my life."

Smiling at the idea of his daughter having close friends who do silly little things like that for her, Sirius made a mental note to buy Blaise something extravagant on his own birthday. "That's a nice idea," he grinned then left the room.

Breakfast was an affair for just daughter and father – Charlie left to the Burrow, giving them time to be alone in the morning – and Kreacher went all out. Kreacher made eggs with the yolk only a little busted, the way he knew Anica loved it, into sandwiches with a slice of ham in it and mayonnaise spread out on the bread. Then he cut up mangoes for a side fruit; drizzled with honey on it. There was a bowl of cinnamon flavored porridge and strips of honey smoked bacon with a pitcher of apple juice. Sirius was impressed that Kreacher went out of his way to make Anica's favorite breakfast foods all for just one sitting, and for once he was kind to the ugly little elf.

When breakfast was completed, Anica left her father on his own in the sitting room; patting his belly and complaining of too much food for years, and ventured into the kitchen. She walked up to Kreacher; about to ask if he needed any help cleaning up, but instead he turned to her and gave her a gift. It shocked the hell out of her and she thought for a second that she caught a glimpse of pain and regret in his eyes. There was a hint of what could be mistaken as blush on his grease stained cheeks and she shocked him even more by kneeling down to his level and pulling him into a hug.

"Thank you Kreacher," she grinned against him before pulling away.

Kreacher shyly watched as Anica stared down at the misshapen brown packaging in her hands. "It isn't much Mistress," he warned her. "Kreacher thought Mistress would like it though because it belonged to Mistress's uncle."

"Uncle?" she asked, tilting her head to the side and opening the gift. Gasping as the house-elf watched her closely, she pulled out the long silver chain adorned with the large teardrop shaped emerald. Getting a closer look at it; she saw there was a snake stuck inside of the emerald.

"It belonged once to Master Regulus," Kreacher nodded his head. "Before Master Regulus d-d-died; he gave it to Kreacher for safekeeping. Kreacher checked it and it is safe for Mistress. Kreacher knows that Master Regulus would love for Mistress to have it."

Putting the necklace on, she beamed down at the still shy elf. "I love it Kreacher. Thank you very much for this gift. I know you loved my uncle Regulus very much and I know how much this must mean to you. Thank you."

"Mistress is very welcome," he smiled; something only she had ever been able to witness. "Happy Birthday, Mistress."

Poking her head out from the kitchen, Anica saw her father lying on the couch with his eyes shut and she smiled to herself. Walking over to him, she contemplated waking him up, but before she could make the decision, he was already opening his eyes which landed on the necklace around her neck. First he rubbed his eyes and blinked then he quickly sat up and reached out to touch it. Anica watched as so many emotions set itself upon his face and she saw the human side of the once broken man. It was hard to remember that he once lost everyone he ever loved before when he spent so much of his days smiling. The thought sickened her as soon as it entered her mind. She spent all of her days smiling too.

"Where did you get that from?" he asked her.

"Kreacher; he said that Uncle Regulus gave it to him for safekeeping before he died and that he knew Uncle Regulus would want me to have it. Kreacher had it wrapped up and everything."

"That was…" Sirius choked back a sudden sob and cleared his throat. "That was kind of him. Regulus loved that pendent; it was his prized possession once. The snake inside of it is a miniaturized real snake that once bit him."

Gasping, Anica fingered the pendent and pressed her chin against her chest to try and get a better look at it. "It-it bit him?"

"Yes," he nodded his head. "He was thirteen and I was sixteen at the time. We were both at Hogwarts and it was during a trip to Hogsmeade; it was his first time there during school and one of his year mates ran up to me and my mates. Regulus was walking near the Shrieking Shack and that very snake snuck up on him and bit him. He was poisoned, but instead of rushing to get the poison out of him, he cursed the snake and stuffed it into a locket he was wearing. Later that week, he could be seen wearing that very necklace."

Continuing to finger the necklace, Anica grinned; "Wow!"

It seemed like hours went by, but one minute Anica was sitting on the floor of her room and caressing her uncle's necklace while ignoring the music playing from her iPod. Then suddenly she was standing in the center of a crowded room; hugging all of her friends and laughing at the decorations. Kreacher apparently took himself to Draco's manor and asked Draco what he thought she would like her theme to be then took himself to Hermione and asked for help in decorating Grimmauld Place. Anica was ordered to stay in her room the entire time – which was more than fine with her – until she was called down. Kreacher wanted to make this an unforgettable and enjoyable day for her, and he was determined. Ron and Harry both agreed that nothing was creepier than Kreacher on a mission to please someone.

The walls in the sitting room went from black and green to a clean white color while pink and white streamers hung from the ceiling. There was pink and white colored snow falling from the ceiling as well and stopping midair, just like how Hogwarts was in December. The fire place had pink flames in it while the couches and chairs were all a white color. A pink and white striped paper covered table was reaming with presents while assortments of muggle and wizarding sweets were scattered on one table with another matching table covered in all sorts of finger foods. There were bowls filled with pumpkin juice, apple juice, and chilled bottles of butterbeer.

Anica was laughing about something with Tonks when her eyes spotted Theo talking to Harry and Ron; excusing herself, she joined them. "Do you guys mind if I steal Theo away for a while?"

"It's your birthday," Ron shook his head; his hands filled with a plate of food, "You can have everything you want and you want Nott?"

Laughing, she thanked them then pulled the somewhat confused Slytherin away. "Thank you," she told him.

"For what?"

Pushing her hair back, she allowed him to see the dangling pink colored diamond hearts hanging from her bottom earlobes. "Only one person in this whole world knew how much I wanted these earrings."

Blushing, he nodded his head; "Those are from David. Theo has something else for you; something less personal than diamond earrings."

"You didn't have to get me anything," she told him.

Theo was about to respond, but Draco chose that very moment to join them. "Those are lovely earrings," he said, kissing the blushing girl's cheeks. "Who are they from?"

"Just an old friend."

Seeing the hopeful glint in Theo's eyes and hearing the snicker in Anica's voice, Draco cocked an eyebrow, but didn't push it. "We're still on tonight right, love?"

"Of course," she nodded her head, lifting her wrist.

Laughing, Draco grabbed the offered hand and fingered the pink bracelet it was decorated with. "You're going to be amused with the charm I give to you tonight."

"Really, now?" she grinned. "What is it?"

"I'm not telling you," he shook his head. "It's your gift; you know the rules. You need to wait until tonight."

Laughing, she pouted, "Fine then. I'll figure it out before tonight anyways."

"Really now?"

"Mhmm… every year, you get me something to remind me of some huge thing that happened that year. My eighth birthday you got me a wand charm because you told me you were a wizard that day. My ninth birthday you brought me a charm in the shape of slide because we would always lie down on the slide at the park when it would rain and I remember for my tenth birthday; it was a book charm because I read all of your wizarding history books and thought they were all amazing…"

Reaching out and grabbing the charm bracelet on Anica's wrist, Theo stared intently at all the tiny little diamond charms. He saw her wearing it only some nights when they were together, and when he asked her where she got it from; she told him that her best friend who she took like a brother from the foster home brought it for her. He never really questioned her about it after that, but he did remember wondering what each little charm meant. "So each of these little charms have a meaning?" he asked her.

Nodding her head, she continued. "The little smoky colored owl is from my eleventh birthday and it's a replica of the actual owl that Draco brought for me because he was leaving to Hogwarts the very next day and from that moment on; the owl would be our only hope of transportation."

"And the broom?" he asked.

Draco at least had the decency to blush at this point. "I… erm… well…"

"Draco already convinced his father to buy his way onto the Slytherin's Quidditch team so the broom was to remind me he was a Quidditch player," Anica rolled her eyes, but grinned. "It was also meant to warn me that he would be taking me on my first broom ride. Needless to say; I hate brooms," she flicked the black diamond dog and snickered, "This was the year that the infamous Sirius Black escaped Azkaban. Draco knew he was an _Animagus_ because of his father and he felt that he was an important part of that year."

"Turns out I was right," Draco grinned; proud of himself for picking a charm that turned out to mean much more to Anica then he originally thought it would have. "It turns out that he's your father."

"Yeah, yeah," she rolled her eyes, but nonetheless, her grin still hadn't left her face. "You got lucky with that one."

"What's that lumpy looking thing?" Theo asked, poking at a silver colored blob.

"That my, dear Theo," she chuckled, "Is a rock. A lot happened when I was thirteen, so for my fourteenth birthday, Draco decided to get me a rock; it's to show me that he'll always be my rock when I'm weak and whatnot."

"That's… sweet."

"Isn't it," smirked Draco.

"My fifteenth birthday resorted in a little golden snitch because when we were fourteen, Draco went to the Quidditch World Cup, and there was no Quidditch that year at Hogwarts because of the Tri-Wizard Tournament so he wanted to me to have a snitch for him," grinning as she lightly flicked each one while telling Theo what their sentimental value was, Anica found herself wanting to laugh. So far each charm seemed to represent Draco more than her – in some ways… "My sixteenth birthday's charm is a hot pink diamond heel," she started to laugh and snorted; "It's an inside thing; Draco and Blaise can explain it to you later, but it involves _Polyjuice Potion, _firewhiskey and a hooker."

Theo lifted both eyebrows into his hairline when the two best friends started laughing loudly, and he shook his head; he decided he was better off not knowing. His eyes found the only non-diamond item on the bracelet and his body shivered at the sight of it; "Is that a snake?"

Suddenly the laughter stopped and Draco's eyes also found the green emerald snake; its eyes were replaced with red rubies. "Sixth year just finished and I attempted to kill Dumbledore," he nodded his head. "I knew the war was coming and I wanted Anica to know the seriousness of it; each charm represents something that changed both of our lives in the year before. I gave her the snake to symbolize me being a Death Eater and to also represent the war that was coming ahead. I didn't know if I would live through it or not, and I wanted her to remember me for what I truly was."

"A slimy snake that was forced to do dark things," Anica chuckled; trying to lighten the seriousness that just took over their little huddled trio. "Don't worry Draco, I remember."

Laughing it off, Draco shook his head; "I think Slytherin colored Quidditch robes would look just lovely on that bracelet of yours."

"I wouldn't put it pass you to buy me that charm," she snorted. "I've already got the broom and snitch."

Everyone was talking in their own groups, but Anica managed to squirm her way into each one. She was pleased to see that Blaise was in a deep conversation with Bill and Tonks while Ron was in his own deep conversation with Theo about something. Even Hermione and Draco managed to stay separated; proving that everyone in the room had finally managed to literally put aside all their past prejudices. Her eyes landed on Charlie and she saw that he would occasionally look away from Harry and Ginny to glance at her before quickly turning away. Kreacher was actually talking to Hermione about house-elf rights and Sirius was talking to Molly and Arthur about kids growing up and moving on or whatnot.

"Happy birthday!" Fred and George both grinned, wrapping their arms around Anica.

Grinning, Anica allowed her own arms to settle on each one of their waists and look between them both; "Thanks guys," Fred and George had somehow wormed their way into being her new Draco. They knew the secrets that she prayed Draco never learned. Draco couldn't be there for her now, but the twins hadn't left her side yet.

"We've got a present for you," Fred told her.

George started leading her towards the stairs, "But we don't want anyone else to see it."

"It's up in your room already," Fred explained before she could question where they were taking her.

"What is it?" she asked.

"Well, you'll see in a couple of seconds," they both laughed. "Come on now."

Allowing them to lead her to her bedroom, Anica stood between them both as Fred opened her bedroom door and she frowned; "That's new," she said.

Rolling their eyes, the twins led her to new cabinet in the far corner of her room. "Our mate Lee helped us to make it," George started to explain.

"Cherry oak borders-"

"-with crystalized glass made from the tears of a unicorn," George finished.

Gasping, Anica ran her fingers along the cabinet and found herself shivering at the softness of the glass. There were designs carved into the wood; designs that she knew meant: protection, love, honor, and family. "This is so beautiful," she told them. "Thank you guys so much. And thank Lee for me too."

"Silly little girl," Fred began to laugh. "The cabinet isn't the actual present."

"Yeah," George winked, "Consider it… the wrapping."

"Huh?"

"Well, go on," Fred gently nudged her. "Open it up."

Confused about why the beautiful cabinet wasn't the present, Anica opened the doors and she gasped even louder than before. This time her hands were over her mouth and she felt the tears rolling down her face. She's seen one of these before; only once. Blaise's mum had one, and she remembered him explaining to her that they were very expensive, and made with a specific person in mind. He told her that many witches and wizards pass it on through their family, but that after a while it starts to spit some of the memories back out. He told her that you couldn't buy these in a shop anywhere; but that you had to go to an actual goblin to ask them to make the bowl that would hold the memories. If the goblin actually agreed to such a task; then they would need to specify the name of the user along with a picture – the goblin has the literal picture of said person in mind while making it – once the metal bowl is completed, you then have to find someone to create a podium out of concrete stone for you so you could place the bowl in it.

"This is amazing," Anica finally managed to say; gently fingering the light rose colored stone, with the matching protection charms carved all around it. Her fingers slowly found its way to the bowl; which was cool to the touch and sent shivers down her spine. The bowl was a golden pink sort of color. It was definitely personal, and she could tell it was made specifically for her. "You guys shouldn't have…"

"But we did," they both told her; pleased to see that she loved their gift. "Lee helped us to carve the stone as well," George said. "He has a cousin who lives in Egypt so it was easy to get to the rose colored stone, and he's really good at runes, so he was the one who made sure we put up the right charms."

"And Bill and Fleur both work with goblins all day," Fred added in, "So it was easy for us to find one who was eagerly willing to help make you the metal basin."

Turning away from the gift, Anica jumped on both of them; "Thank you guys so much. You really shouldn't have. I can't believe you guys made them on your own – the cabinet and the pensieve? You guys are truly amazing friends. Oh… thank you guys so much."

"You're welcome," Fred laughed.

George also laughed as he and his twin returned the girls eager hug. "We knew you'd love it."

"This means a lot to me," she smiled shyly, wiping away her tears as she pulled back from them. "You guys actually went out of your way and made it yourself. And your friend Lee – please tell him I said thank you, would you?"

"Sure," they both nodded their heads. "Although-" Fred grinned.

George's grin matched Fred's and Anica stepped back; she knew they were planning something. "Lee was all too pleased to do it. He's a fan of your dads, you see."

"Lee?" she questioned, raised an eyebrow, smirked, slowly grinned then started to grin. "Oh right, I've heard of him before. Your best mate from school right? Lee Jordan? He was the one who always pranked everyone with you guys, right?" when they both nodded their heads, she started to laugh. "What did you guys have to bribe him with?"  
>"Nothing," they both said at once, which caused Anica to fold her arms over her chest and eye them suspiciously. "Really," they both said at once again. Anica began tapping her foot now, and they both said; "It's not so much bribed him as it is telling him it was for the daughter of Sirius Black who also happens to be Padfoot."<p>

George was the one who continued when his brother stopped talking; "He really didn't do it for anything. We told him it was for a friend and he said that he would see what he could do, but once we mentioned it was for the daughter of Padfoot-"

"We had the stone by the next morning," Fred finished.

Laughing, Anica shook her head then hugged them both again and kissed their cheeks. "Well tell him that Padfoot's daughter appreciates it a lot, and that she owes him one."

An hour after the twins and Anica returned downstairs, it was time to open presents. For the first time in her life, Anica felt overwhelmed by such a thing. She wasn't used to getting so many things. Growing up, Margo and Edward never made a huge fuss about her birthday; they would just give her a rag or a pair of shoes that they found on the side of the road or something equally disgusting and disturbing. Of course, once she met Draco she became spoiled with gifts from him and then eventually Blaise, but they were the only ones who really went all out for her, and brought her things. This birthday was different. She hadn't really gotten to opening the presents yet and she already had a personal heirloom that her paternal uncle made himself, diamond earrings that she once stared longingly at in a muggle jewelry store, and a pensieve made from real goblin metal and Egyptian stone that came attached with a cabinet made from cherry oak wood and actual unicorn tears. She felt excited and nervous at the same time; it felt like her first birthday. –Then she remembered something her dad told her earlier that morning; _This is only the second birthday of yours that we've been together – _she would treat it as such. This was her second birthday and she was with people she loved.

"It's pretty overwhelming, huh?" Harry asked with a bottle of butterbeer in his hand while sitting next to her on the couch while everyone gathered around her. Seeing the confusion in her face, he chuckled softly and whispered, "I grew up in a foster home too, remember?"

"Oh right," Anica grinned; glad to have someone who had an almost nearly somewhat similar past as her. "Did you get old shoes found on the side of the road and a rag too for your birthday?"

"Even better," he grinned; "A smelly sock directly from my uncle's foot and a coat hanger."

"Nice," she laughed. "When did you finally get to have a real birthday?"

"When I went to Hogwarts," he grinned. "Hagrid made me a cake for my eleventh birthday and brought me Hedwig. Then of course Ron and Hermione always gave me a present. After I met the rest of the Weasleys and Sirius though, they turned it into something and I would have a cake and all sorts of gifts. I loved having Ron and Hermione, but it's nice to know that other people care too."

Looking over at Draco and Blaise who were now playfully punching each other much to the dismay of Hermione and Ron, Anica smiled and looked back at Harry. "It is," she nodded her head in agreement. "I always had Draco and Blaise on my birthdays, but it's nice to know that they aren't the only ones who care about the day I was born. Honestly, I would be perfectly content without the gifts; just having everyone here is nice enough for me."

"I felt the same way too in the beginning," he told her, "But soon enough you'll learn that it doesn't work that way. In the end they'll always turn it into a big deal."

Anica was stunned throughout the entire process of opening her gifts. Fred and George felt it would be only right if they gave her something to open in front of everyone else, so she got a box filled with their shop's merchandise and nearly strangled them with her hugs. Ginny gave her – much to Anica's delight – pink dress robes, because she noticed Anica loves the color pink and she didn't know what else to get her. Hermione began to laugh and insisted that Anica open her gift next, and the three girls started to laugh. Hermione and Ginny claimed that they didn't plan it, but Hermione's gift consisted of open toed silver pumps, which coincidentally had a pink bow on it. Bill groaned as Fleur began to excitedly clap her hands and jumped up to hand Anica her gift next – all the males moaned when they heard Anica squeal in delight at the charmed pink purse; although it was tiny, it was charmed to hold enough items in it that would equal up to the size of her bedroom, and had a five year warranty on it – the purse itself was a light shade of pink, outlined with silver and at the end of a long silver strap. Bill apologized to all the males and insisted that Fleur was the one who picked it out.

"Does anyone else have anything pink to give her?" Draco nervously asked the room.

Chuckling, Tonks waved her hand; "Technically, it's from Teddy though."

Teddy gave Anica a pink colored jewelry box that played a muggle melody every time she opened it, and she slathered the baby in wet kisses before she moved on. Harry claimed that he couldn't compare to a brand new broom, but hoped that she liked it anyways. She did – she loved it actually. Her godbrother gave her a cream and canary colored leather diary; made from the skin of a hippogriff apparently – along with a quill that was made with the feather from the very same hippogriff. Ron blushed as he handed her a yellow wrapped box and blushed even more when she gasped at the sight of the brand new; scarlet and silver colored _Wizards Chess _board. Blaise winked as he handed her his box and she started to laugh. From the moment she met him; he had a set routine: balloons at midnight, earrings by owl – though from now on it would most likely be in person seeing as how he had to leave to Hogwarts the very next day for all her other birthdays – then another gift the first weekend after, that he would give to her in person. True to his tradition; she was looking at a pair of scarlet and silver colored diamond earrings in the shape of a witch's hat – it matched the card and the colors from his boyfriend's gift.

Everyone watched in amusement as Anica replaced the earrings right above her other new pair of earrings with the pair that Blaise just gave her. Charlie, Draco, the twins, Sirius, Remus, and even Hermione caught the look in Theo's eyes as he watched her; it looked like he was hurt for a moment that she would replace the diamond hearts with the pair from Blaise, but then sighed in relief when he saw she was wearing the two new pairs together. Tonks and Remus gave her a trunk very similar to the one they gave to Harry for his own birthday, but instead of it being in Gryffindor's colors, hers was a smoky grey mixed in with a smoky black to match her owl. Molly and Arthur gave her a set of black colored dress robes for formal occasions and Charlie blushed as he handed her his gift. He was scared that she wouldn't accept it, but to his relief she gave him a small smile and even thanked him; his gift to her was a book on dragons and a miniature life like version of a _Peruvian Vipertooth_. Draco gave her a photo book with pictures of them from the very first year that they met and claimed that she would just have to wait until tonight for the real thing while Theo handed her a tiny pink and white striped box. Sirius's eyes suddenly lit up as he remembered seeing the same wrapping paper on his daughter's bedroom floor right before she emerged from her room with diamond earrings. He perked up to see what Theo had gotten her.

Laughing as she opened the gift, Anica shocked Theo and the twins when she engulfed him in a tight embrace. "You remembered," she squealed out in delight.

"Remembered what?" Draco asked; curious as to what Theo could have remembered. And also wanting to know why Sirius was now eying the hugging teens suspiciously.

"How much I wanted these books," she answered, lifting up two books for everyone to see it.

"A Midsummer's Night Dream and Othello?" asked Hermione, "You like Shakespeare?"

"Love Shakespeare," Anica nodded her head, enthusiastically skimming the books' pages with her hands. "These are my two favorite plays by him. I've always wanted the books for my own, but I never got them. Thank you Theo; I can't believe you remembered."

"How could I not," he laughed. "All you ever did was, quote those two books."

Draco and Blaise both exchanged worried looks now. Anica would owl them –Blaise mostly seeing as how Draco was a Death Eater and being watched already – about her dates with her muggle boyfriend; she would quote Shakespeare to him all the time, and he promised to one day get her, her own books. But that was impossible. Theo wasn't a muggle. And he was Theo… there was no way… right? "Well thank you," Anica grinned, hugging him again. "I love these," she didn't even notice the exchange between Draco and Blaise.

The gifts were followed by a dark chocolate and strawberry flavored cake with homemade vanilla ice cream. Charlie watched as Anica played with the dragon he gave her and his heart fluttered as she laughed when it blew a puff of smoke in her direction. He overheard her telling the girls that she was going to name it; Honesty. He was amazed that she caught on to it being a female dragon so quickly, and even more amazed by the name she chose for it – such an honest and trusting name for a foul and evil-tempered beast. Theo watched the cautious way Charlie stepped around Anica and the way she tried her hardest to avoid him and it clicked into place for him. Charlie was the one who hurt her. Draco, Blaise, and Sirius kept a close watch on Theo. Sirius knew it was Theo who gave Anica the earrings and the other two knew that the only person Anica ever quoted Shakespeare to had been David Pierce. Obviously Theo isn't that horrid muggle she dated, but now they were frightened. Anica and Theo obviously knew each other from before and Theo's obviously been in the muggle world with her – he did sing to her in a muggle karaoke bar… and now he just brought her muggle books.

Anica was having so much fun that she didn't see the watchful gazes from most of the males in the room. She didn't see the loving gaze in Charlie's eyes or the enraged envy in Theo's eyes. She didn't see the glaring showdown between them both nor did she catch the remorseful stares of the two people she loved like brothers. She was too wrapped up in her conversation with Hermione and Ginny while holding Teddy that she didn't notice the way Sirius looked between Theo and Charlie with a protective confusion, and she definitely didn't see the twins watching her cradle the red haired and flame colored eyed baby.

For the first time, Anica was enjoying her life and didn't pay attention to anything going on around her.

**A/N: I'm hoping that my uploading schedule goes back to normal soon because my insomnia is still unbearable, but as I said above (two of my best friends just gave birth on the 4th) and out of the two, one of them is like my sister and this is her 2cd baby and her 1st one turns 2 in 2 weeks… I'm godmother for both and her boyfriend is a douche so I'm staying at her apartment to help her out for now. She has no internet. The good thing is I can write many many chapters now, but the downside is that I don't know when I can upload them. I'll upload once I get home, which will hopefully be at least every other day or something before I go back to her place. –I'll edit any errors once I get the time…**

_**I wasn't planning on making her birthday into two separate chapters, but as I started to write out her night with Draco, I realized that this is already 11 pages long… so I'm sorry, but you'll have to wait to find out what Sirius got for her and about her birthday night with Draco and her weekend with Draco and Blaise… please review! Let me know what you guys think. Personally, I think that I dragged it on too long with the gifts and the pinkness and I know that everyone gave her more personal things then Harry, but she is a girl and her favorite color is pink and they don't know what sort of things she's into yet… what do you guys think of her relationship with the twins? What about Blaise/Draco/Sirius/Theo? Charlie's gift? Teddy's looks? Let me know guys…(:**_


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